


fake it til you make it

by violetyoongix



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bad Boys with Feelings™, Denial of Feelings, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Romance, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Feelings Realization, Fluff and Angst, Humor, M/M, Sick Character, Strangers to Lovers, Teenage Drama, Troubled pasts, badboy!yunho, brief yusang, established woosan, i swear yunho isn't a jerk, inspired by She's Dating the Gangster, it sounds cliche but it isn't i promise, jongho and mingi are cousins, lots of cameos, lots of pining, neither yunho or mingi really thought this through, ok it might be a little, san and wooyoung are yunho's partners in crime, seonghwa and hongjoong are mingi's protectors, sweet boy! mingi, yeosang is just the sweetest boy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-14
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2020-09-27 06:10:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 49,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20402989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/violetyoongix/pseuds/violetyoongix
Summary: “I want you to start dating me.”“...Excuse me?”“But not for real,” His smug grin widened, “Just think of it as a favor, after all...you owe me.”xxxyungi! au where yunho is sort of a bad boy™ who wants the attention of his crush, and he uses the strange, yet intriguing new boy mingi to get it.





	1. a near death experience

Mingi is extremely nervous, for multiple reasons. He’s only been back in Seoul for a little over two weeks, after living overseas for so long with his parents, before finally deciding he’d spend his senior year back in Korea. It’s been a while so his Korean wasn’t as good as it used to be, but he’d spent the summer diligently training himself and his Aunt Mina was always willing to help him out.

_ “Ow!” Mingi whines, startled as a race of pain surges through his left cheek. He threw a startled glance at his Aunt, who was smiling at him while pinching his cheek. He hated when she did that. _

_ “You have nothing to worry about Mingi,” She said softly, finally letting go of his face, “You are so sweet, caring, and handsome! You’ll have no problem making friends, I’m absolutely positive! Plus, you’ll have Jongho here to help you out.” _

_ The other boy sitting at the table snorted with amusement, shaking his head at his mother’s antics before scooping a spoonful of cereal into his mouth. _

It was nice of her to say, but Mingi knew her opinion was extremely biased. It was no secret that Aunt Mina was very affectionate to Mingi, he was her favorite nephew after all. He shuddered at the memory of her (rather strong) pinches, and absently traced the area with his fingers. Another reason why he was so nervous was because _ he _had to order their coffee (he played rock, paper, scissors with Jongho and lost) and even though his speaking Korean was decent, he still couldn’t help the apprehension that had settled in his stomach since he woke up that day. 

“What was it like, high school in America?” Jongho asked curiously from beside him. His hair soft brown hair was well-groomed and parted away from his face. He fiddled with one of the straps to his backpack for a second before giving his older cousin his undivided attention, his interest sparking in his eyes.

Mingi paused to think, tugging on the tie of his sort of tight uniform (he was kind of tall for his age and they ordered his last minute). “Well, for one you didn’t have to wear uniforms...unless you went to a private school.”

Jongho’s eyes widened in surprise, “Woah, seriously?” He frowned down at his own matching uniform, “Must be nice.”

“But overall, school is pretty much the same there. Oh, except in the one I went to you could leave campus to go get lunch,” Mingi’s expression brightened with nostalgia, “My friends and I used to go to Chick-Fil-A and Taco Bell all the time, it was so much fun...” His smile slowly slipped off his face at the reminder of his past, and what he had to leave behind.

Jongho noticed this, and immediately felt guilty, “Well, we can go to Chick-Fil-A after school, if you want.”

Mingi laughed softly, his smile not quite reaching his eyes, “Yeah, we could do that sometime.”

Jongho still felt really bad, but before he could try to think of another way to cheer up his cousin, the cashier at the register called for the next person in line. Mingi took a few brave steps forward, trying to generate some confidence he did not quite feel. He made eye contact with the shorter guy behind the counter, and immediately felt his face get hot as flush creeped up the back of his neck. The cashier was very handsome, with long strands of freshly dyed-blonde hair that fell to his eyebrows. Wide brown eyes, a long nose, multiple silver piercings dangling from his ears, full pink lips that were currently stretched into a friendly smile.

He was very attractive, and Mingi was very gay.

“Hi, what can I get for you today?” The cashier greeted, with that same warm, friendly smile. Mingi’s eyes flitted to the name tag that was pinned to the green apron he was wearing: _ Wooyoung. _It suited him. He looked pretty young too, probably around his age, but he wasn’t sure.

Mingi winced when he felt Jongho (not so subtly) nudge him in the ribs. He blinked rapidly, snapping himself out of the trance the blonde seemed to put him in. “Oh! Uh r-right, sorry!” Mingi gave a breathy chuckle, his eyes turning into crescents as a sheepish smile took over his features. 

Wooyoung’s grin widened, his eyes examining the nervous, tall boy in front of him. He found him very amusing, “That’s okay, I’m ready when you are.”

Once Mingi finished their order, in surprisingly stable sentences, both of the teens moved to waiting area for pick up. Jongho was now staring at him with an amused expression, his lips stretched into a cool smirk as he watched the taller teen. Mingi pretended like he couldn’t see the other’s gaze, but it was getting to the point where he could practically _ feel _it. He already knew what Jongho was going to say, the teasing glint to his eyes practically telepathically broadcasting his thoughts. He tried to distract himself by looking at the baristas as they made their drinks, but accidentally ended up making eye-contact with Wooyoung instead, who sent him a playful wink, before turning back to the customer. Mingi’s heart jumped into his throat, he made a weird strangled sound that immediately had the rosy heat flood his face as he quickly looked down at the ground in embarrassment. He heard Jongho snickering from somewhere beside him. Relief couldn’t even begin to describe how he felt when their orders were finally announced.

* * *

As Mingi approached the school, he could feel his apprehension growing again. He took a sip of his iced white chocolate mocha to calm his nerves. Sweat was starting to perspire and gather on the back of his neck and a little bit on his forehead, making his already uncomfortable uniform very warm. Even for it being late August, it was an abnormally hot day. Jongho had met up with his friends outside of the coffee shop, and decided to walk with them a little bit ahead (of course after Mingi reassuring him that he was fine with it). They were already crossing the sidewalk to get to the large academy on the other side, and Mingi felt a faint smile spread across his lips. It made him feel a little bit better to see his cousin amiable with his friends, he felt his phone buzzed in his pocket, he slowed his steps briefly as he struggled to take it out of his pocket. It was a text from his mother;

** _Have a good day, sweetie._ **

The sadness from earlier weighed down on him again, and he felt his smile slip away as he texted her back. He sighed softly, sliding his phone back into his pocket. He knew that he couldn’t help it, it was simply life and there wasn’t much he could do about it, but the situation still left a bitter, somber feeling inside him. He hated that he couldn’t change anything, and he knew that whatever sadness he was feeling, was only amplified by the amount of sadness his parents must be feeling. 

Mingi felt his chest freeze up with an uncomfortable burning sensation, and he had to stop to practice his breathing instructions that were instilled into him since he was a young kid. After a few moments, he could feel the pressure subside in his chest and his breathing felt easier. Mingi took a deep breath, before looking up to finally cross the street-

_ “Wha-!” _ His surprised shout was interrupted as a hand suddenly snaked around his waist, and pulled him back almost harshly. Not a second later, a large truck came speeding down the street, the driver not even acknowledging the fact that it could have ran Mingi over…if it wasn’t for-

_ “Hey!” _ An unfamiliar voice said, pulling the ravenette out of his racing thoughts as he was forcibly turned around in the arms of this person. Mingi looked at this stranger, and was immediately taken aback. He thought that the barista was cute, but the boy in front of him was _very _ cute_. _ Under that fringe of chestnut brown hair, was wide dark eyes, a buttoned nose (with a silver stud in it), and small but full lips. He was also surprised by this guy’s height, it wasn’t often that he met someone as tall as himself, never mind actually being _ taller_. Oddly enough, he had an innocent aura that surrounded him, and Mingi was reminded of a big happy puppy. 

That was, until his wide eyes darkened with a cold expression. He felt himself being abruptly pushed out of the taller boy’s arms, and those wide dark eyes glared at him, “What the hell is wrong with you? Trying to kill yourself on the first day?”

Mingi froze, _ okay maybe he’s not as nice and innocent as I thought. _Yet, he still felt himself blush. The boy just stared at him expectantly, slowly raising an eyebrow and Mingi forgot that he actually asked him a question. 

“Oh! S-sorry, my bad! That truck came out of nowhere.” He said, rubbing the back of his neck. The boy’s annoyed expression morphed into one of surprise.

“Was that...English?”

It took Mingi another moment to realize he didn’t say that in Korean. “Oh, _ sorry_! My mistake, I didn’t see the truck.”

The boy just snorted softly, before his gaze ran down Mingi’s frame. “Interesting.” Was all he murmured, before walking right past him, his hands in his pockets, an aloof and detached expression on his face.

Looks can _ truly _ be deceiving. 

After the shock of the situation finally worn off, Mingi finally crossed the street.

* * *

Despite making it on campus on time, Mingi was still late to his first class. He was still adjusting to the layout of his new school, and he was a bit too shy to ask for directions even though it was clear he needed them. After a couple of more minutes of wandering the halls helplessly and on the verge of just giving up, Mingi (quite literally) ran into someone. He felt the papers slip out of his hand on impact, and a quick curse from the other person. Mingi blinked once, looking down frantically at the smaller male who landed on the ground, rubbing his head with a soft groan. He quickly bowed down, spewing out apologies nervously. 

The smaller male examined him for a moment, before shaking his head as he blew out a breathless chuckle, “It’s okay, I’m fine.”

Mingi was unconvinced, still swelling with guilt. He quickly offered his hand, helping the other student to his feet. First he embarrasses himself at a coffee shop, then almost gets plowed down by a truck, falls into the arms of another student, gets lost in his school, and finally knocks another one down. Could this day become any more humiliating?

The other student, for his part, accepts Mingi’s help with a bright smile. He was so small and skinny that it felt like Mingi was lifting air, but he was relieved he accepted his help nonetheless. 

“I’m so sorry.” Mingi blurted again.

The other student, had wide eyes and vibrant red hair just nodded good-naturedly, “Hey, no worries! It’s okay, I guess I should’ve been paying more attention.” He looked at the papers that were in his hand from when Mingi dropped them, glancing over them curiously before looking back up at him, “Are you new here?”

Mingi nodded, flush threatening to crawl up his face again. This student was handsome too, he really couldn’t catch a break. “Y-yeah, I am.”

The student raised an eyebrow slowly, his lips curling into an amused grin, “You wouldn’t happen to be Song Mingi, would you?”

The taller brunette just blinked, then nodded.

“Well, then I guess it’s a good thing you ran into me,” He said with a wide smile, “Hello, my name is Kim Hongjoong. I’m your student success mentor, also known as an SSM. I’m here to be your guide for your first week of school.”

After carefully processing the other’s words, Mingi felt the relief surge through him. “It’s nice to meet you Hongjoong.”

“Nice to meet you too! Now, let’s see where you’re heading,” The ginger glanced down at his schedule that was still in his hands, “Mr. Lee? Well, that’s great.”

Mingi raised an eyebrow, half in confusion and the other half in curiosity, “Why?”

Hongjoong smiled up at him, “I have that class too.” 

* * *

Mingi’s eyes widened as they entered the spacious cafeteria, examining the rows of tables filled with students before following after Hongjoong as he made a bee-line for a table towards the right side, where large glass windows gave light to the room. Two guys were already sitting down at the table, talking comfortably amongst themselves. The taller one with blonde hair (which Mingi found very handsome) smiled and waved them over.

“Sorry I was a little late today, I had to show Mingi around. He’s new here,” The shorter boy replied quickly, gesturing to the tall, meek boy behind him, “As you know, this is Mingi. Mingi, this is Seonghwa and Yeosang.”

Both of them nodded, with very friendly smiles. Yeosang was just as cute as Seonghwa was, with his large eyes, strong jawline, and puffy lips. Mingi wondered how the hell he was going to survive at this academy with all of these good-looking guys around him. They quickly fell into lively conversation, all of them eagerly talking about what they did over the summer, and what they plan to do together now that they were reunited again. Every once in a while, they would ask Mingi a question, but he didn’t mind not being very active in the conversation. He was still adjusting to the environment around him, and he had a lot on his mind. Memories that he’d rather not think about kept materializing in his mind, but he was pulled out of his reverie by the sounds of plates crashing.

Infact, the whole cafeteria went silent. Conversations ceased as all eyes scanned the cafeteria, looking for the source of the commotion. They all landed on two students, one nearly shaking with visible fear while the other glared down at him. Mingi’s eyes widened, when he realized that he recognized the taller student who saved him from that truck earlier. He also was stunned to recognize one of the two boys who approached him, flanking his sides and crossing their arms with their fierce stares on the poor boy in front of them. From the tray that was dropped upside-down on the ground, and the small streak of a stain that ran across the taller’s mussed uniform, almost anyone could deduct that the shorter guy must’ve spilled his tray on him. Especially when he immediately began to bow profusely in apology, before quickly running out of the cafeteria. There was a tense, but eager silence as everyone watched the taller boy, his face cold and expressionless even though his shirt was dripping from the stain. 

Finally he moved, simply walking over to the paper-towel dispenser and snatching a couple out of it. He said something briefly to who Mingi assumed were his friends, before also disappearing from the cafeteria. Slowly, whispers began to rise as students began to turn back to their tables, the rather anticlimactic incident over.

“Can’t believe they allowed him back here after everything that happened last year.” It was Hongjoong who muttered it, low enough for only the three of them to hear. Seonghwa snickered softly, but Yeosang just frowned.

“Don’t be like that Joong, you don’t know all the details.”

“Yeah, but we know enough to prove he’s a menace to society.” Seonghwa retorted, taking a sip from his water bottle.

The ginger voiced his agreement, and Yeosang simply rolled his eyes.

“Who was that?” Mingi asked softly, after a moment of hesitation. His eyes glanced back to the place where the confrontation happened, before looking back at the three boys at the table.

Hongjoong waved his hand dismissively, “No one you need to get caught up with. He’s bad news, trust me.”

“His name is Yunho,” Yeosang said, ignoring the looks Seonghwa and Hongjoong sent him. “He’s in our year, but he doesn’t look like it because he’s so tall.”

“Yeosang has a crush on him.” Seonghwa said, and the other’s face went bright pink.

“No I do _ not _!”

“Oh really? Why else would you care so much about Mr. Bad Boy, huh?”

“I-” Yeosang shook his head, clearing his throat, “I just don’t think it’s fair to judge people without really _ knowing _them first, that’s all! It’s called being a decent human being.”

“Yeah, right.” Seonghwa replied, his expression dubious.

“But you don’t need to worry about him and his little posse,” Hongjoong finally said, wrapping a comforting arm around Mingi’s shoulder, “You’ve got us!” 

Mingi smiled at that, truly comforted by the other student’s words. It meant a lot because it was something he’d been worried about since moving back to Seoul. Although he couldn’t say his curiosity was sufficiently satisfied. He briefly wondered if Jongho knew anything about him, but eventually decided against it.

He already had enough trouble going on in his life, he didn’t need anymore.


	2. think of it as a favor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow okay so i ended up getting some pretty positive feedback, thank u guys so much! I'll continue this, but fair warning i'm still figuring out how I want this to turn out...which means slow updates hehe.

After lunch was his music class, one of the few Mingi was actually looking forward to. He arrived to the classroom (surprisingly on-time) and took the first available seat towards the back of the second row. He sat down, still distracted with re-organizing his schedule papers that he didn’t even notice someone was looking at him until he heard them clear their throat. Mingi glanced to his left, his eyes widening when he recognized the blonde guy from earlier; the coffee shop, and apparently one of Yunho’s goons.

“Nice to see you again.” He said with a cheshire grin, his fingers fiddling with one of the studded rings on his hand. Mingi briefly wondered how he managed to work so early in the morning and still go to school on time. 

“Hello, Wooyoung.” He answered politely, still a bit nervous. He fumbled a little on his words.

Wooyoung raised an eyebrow, but didn’t comment on it. Instead he stopped playing with his rings and used his hands as a cushion for the back of his head as he leaned against the chair. “I see you settled in pretty well.”

It was Mingi’s turn to raise an eyebrow.

“Hongjoong adopted you into his little group of friends,” The blonde clarified with a shrug, “Kinda figures, you look like someone he’d be friends with. I bet he said something about Yunho and I, huh?”

Mingi blinked. “Uh...yeah?”

“What was it?” Wooyoung glanced at him with an almost legarthic curiosity. 

The ravenette was starting to feel a little awkward. “Um, not much...he just pretty much told me to stay away from you guys.”

There was a gleam in the blonde’s dark eyes that had Mingi’s breath stutter. “And will you?” There was definitely a hint of challenge in his tone.

_ Yes, I should. _Was the answer in his mind, but he got the sense that wasn’t the answer Wooyoung was looking for. Instead, the ravenette shrugged his shoulders, “I’m not really sure. I don’t know enough about anyone to have an opinion.”

Wooyoung looked him up and down carefully, before nodding in agreement, “That’s true. You kinda sound like Yeosang.”

Mingi’s attention perked up at that. He didn’t even have to ask the question, it was written all over his face.

The blonde snorted in amusement, “Friend might be a bit of a stretch, but I’m cool with him. Out of the three of them, I tolerate him the most. If anything I’d say he’s a bit more closer to,” His eyes lit up with that mischievous gleam again, “One of my other friends.”

“Oh.” Was all Mingi could think to say. He was trying to figure out the dynamic between these guys, but it was hard working on limited information. 

“I like you though,” Wooyoung admitted, which caused Mingi to look up at him again. “You’re...interesting to me. Hope Hongjoong and Seonghwa’s judginess doesn’t wear off on you, cuz then you’d be pretty dull.” And with that, the blonde turned away from him as their teacher walked into the room. 

Mingi turned away too, clumsily getting to his feet to bow with the rest of the class to their instructor. Wooyoung’s last words were still going through his head.

_ I’m interesting? _

In a way, if one were to look back on his life, it could be described that way. But there was no way Wooyoung could ever have known that.

* * *

It was the last class of the day, which Mingi found quite easily since Yeosang’s class was right next to his. Mingi walked into the classroom, his eyes were immediately drawn to the tall figure who sat languidly at the desk, one hand scrolling through his phone while the other one was lightly buried in his brown locks, using his forearm and elbow as a platform to support his head. 

It was Yunho, who changed out their standard white button-down shirt for a loose grey t-shirt that was probably used for gym class. But even in a baggy plain shirt, he was easily still the best looking person in the classroom. Eyes darted towards him and small whispers arose, mostly from the girls who were admiring the lean, but firm tanned arms that were on display thanks to the shirt. Mingi wasn’t immune to this as well, seeing as it took someone accidentally running into his shoulder from behind to realize he had been standing in the middle of the classroom for way _ too _long just staring. He was thankful that Yunho or anyone else didn’t seem to notice, and made his way to an empty seat near the third row.

He wished he could say that was the end of it, but it wasn’t. All throughout class, he found himself breaking away from the monotonous tone of his teacher and thinking about other things instead, like how his new life was going to play out here. Once or twice, he felt his eyes land on the back on Yunho’s head, which was still in the same disinterested position as before. He couldn’t explain it, but there was something about Yunho that intrigued Mingi. Maybe it was the big, wide eyes surrounded by thick lashes that could be seen as innocent if it wasn’t for the cold expression locked inside them. Maybe it was because everyone frowned and whispered about him when he walked into the room. Maybe it was because of what Yeosang and Wooyoung said earlier. Maybe it was just because he was really attractive and Mingi’s will wasn’t strong enough to ignore it. 

Whatever the case was, he couldn’t deny that Hongjoong warning him about Yunho earlier only served to pique his curiosities more instead of convincing him to stay away. He wanted to know just a little bit more about the boy, at least enough to satisfy this strange interest. After all, he _ did _save him from getting killed by a truck. The very least he could do was give Yunho the benefit of the doubt.

* * *

Mingi could feel the stare from all the way across the living room, and after a couple of more seconds, he finally gave up and put his book down. As he expected, two small dark eyes were trained on him in a way that radiated curiosity. Aunt Mina was leaning against the counter, in the open kitchen that faced the living room. She was pretending to be looking for a cup to use, but Mingi knew better. It’s been 15 minutes since he sat down on the couch and decided to start reading the book given to him for his Korean literature class, and she hadn’t moved from her spot.

  
“Go ahead.” Mingi said with a dramatic sigh, throwing his head back on the couch to stare at the ceiling.

“Go ahead what?” He heard her deceptively innocent voice ask.

He looked at her again, “I know you want to ask how my day went. I’m surprised you could hold it in for this long, Auntie.”

She rolled her eyes, but they brightened with excitement as she immediately left the kitchen and sat down on the single chair directly across from Mingi. Her hands were on her lap, and her eyes danced with elation as she eagerly leaned in. 

“Well!” She prompted, nodding her head, “Tell me about it! Was it good? Bad? How are your teachers? Did you make any friends? Meet any cute guys?” She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively on that last question.

Mingi groaned, his face flushed in slight embarrassment, _ “Auntie!” _

“Oh, stop being so dramatic. It’s not like I asked if you’re still a virgin.” She said, with a dismissive hand. 

Mingi blushed.

_ “Oh,” _His Aunt’s smile was coy, a teasing glint to her voice as she looked at him, “That’s fine too! Actually, it’s really cute. My sweet nephew is saving it for someone special, huh?” Of course as she said this, Jongho walked into the room. His eyes widened in alarm, and he threw a puzzled glance at Mingi’s red face.

“Auntie, _ please _.” Mingi begged.

Jongho got the message, “Mom, stop terrorizing him.”

Aunt Mina fumed, crossing her arms, “I’m just making conversation! You teenage boys never like to tell your parents anything anymore. It’s so sad!”

“I don’t think Mingi would want to tell you the first person he’d have sex with.” Jongho said dryly.

Mingi choked on air.

“Well why not? It’s not like I would gossip to anyone! Plus, I’m not his mom! I’m his aunt,” She turned to Mingi with a smile, “Your _ fun _ Auntie! You can tell me anything, you know that right?”

All Mingi wanted was this conversation to be over.

“You’d might as well be his mom with the way you constantly badger him.” Jongho pointed at his older cousin, “Look at him, Mom.”

“He looks fine.”

“His face is _ red _.”

“Could be the temperature,” Mina looked at Mingi again, “Do you want me to turn down the temperature?”

“Actually, I’m getting kind of tired! I’ll think I’ll go take a nap,” Mingi said, quickly getting to his feet before his two relatives could argue further about him. 

“Okay,” Aunt Mina said, standing to her feet. She looked slightly worried, but for once she didn’t voice it. “I’ll call you when dinner is ready.”

Mingi nodded gratefully, before disappearing up the stairs. Behind his back, he could hear their conversation continue.

“You’d tell me if you weren’t a vir-”

“Yeah, mom. Don’t worry.” Jongho answered with an exasperated sigh.

* * *

“Guys, we have to go to G-Plex this weekend.” Seonghwa said, as the four students made their way down the hall. Hongjoong voiced his agreement excitedly while Yeosang simply nodded with an amused smile.

“G-Plex?” Mingi echoed softly, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

Hongjoong’s eyes widened comically, “Oh my god, that’s right! You’ve never been before.”

“No, I haven’t.” Mingi answered lamely, “What is it?”

“Pretty much the best arcade in Seoul, a lot of kids from our school like to hang out there after school and on the weekends.” Yeosang informed him helpfully. 

“They have those in America right?” Hongjoong asked curiously.

Mingi nodded with a soft chuckle, “Yeah, we just didn’t have internet cafes.”

His eyes widened again in surprise,  _ “What?!” _

“Yeah, hehe…”

Seonghwa shook his head, “It’s a good thing you’re here with us then.”

A sudden commotion was heard, and the hallway parted like the red sea as students quickly got out of the way. Two guys (Wooyoung and another one with black and red hair) looked to be fighting at first, but after a few moments Mingi realized they were playing around. When they finally stopped roughhousing, Wooyoung slung an arm around the taller’s shoulder, and he leaned down to whisper something into his ear. Wooyoung laughed, loud and lively, it echoed off the walls and brought even more curious stares their way. Mingi noticed, belatedly, that Yunho wasn’t around.

“God, here they go again,” Hongjoong said with an eye roll. Mingi turned to him, “They always make a scene! I seriously don’t know why they haven’t been kicked out yet, all they do is cause trouble!”

As they came closer, Wooyoung’s gaze drifted from the guy to them (especially Hongjoong) and he winked at him as he passed by.

Hongjoong made a disgruntled sound, and Seonghwa laughed at him. Yeosang rolled his eyes at the both of them.

* * *

Yeosang was nice enough to walk with Mingi to his last class of the day. By the end of the week, he could definitely feel his apprehension over starting this new life in Korea simmering down. He was comfortable around Hongjoong, Seonghwa, and Yeosang, despite their innate “judgy-ness” that Wooyoung claims they carry. He also liked Wooyoung too (despite the dark clothing, multiple metal rings, and fierce dark eyeshadow) the blonde was very friendly and easy to talk to because he loved to talk.

“You sure you don’t want me to come by after class?” Yeosang asked, his gaze carefully worried and Mingi was amazed by how sincere and caring he was.

“Oh no don’t worry about it, I’ll be alright,” Mingi said with a breathless chuckle, “I’m probably making you late to your own class as it is.”

Yeosang waved his concern away in the same fashion that reminded him of his Aunt, “Don’t worry about that, my teacher would understand. I just want to make sure _ you’re _alright Mingi. How are you adjusting to everything?”

The ravenette just nodded, “I’m fine. Thanks for the help Yeosang, I’ll see you later.”

Once the two students parted, Mingi walked into the classroom, immediately noticing the sharp pair of brown eyes staring at him fiercely. It was none other than Yunho, who sat slightly slumped in his chair (because he was so tall) with his arms and legs crossed languidly. Despite the bold, piercing expression in his eyes, his body remained in a relaxed position, eerily calm in a way that was unnerving to Mingi. He quickly walked past him, and he didn’t have to look back to feel the bold gaze follow him as he took his seat three rows away.

Why was he always staring at him like that anyway? 

Mingi hadn’t spoken to him since his first day when he almost got hit by a truck. Maybe he wasn’t directly the problem, maybe Yunho just liked to stare at people? Maybe that was just his personality, being silent and intimidating? _ No, that makes no sense. _Mingi frowned at his inner musing, tugging on the collar of his uniform again. Why was it always so uncomfortably warm in these buildings?

When class was over, Mingi gathered his things into his backpack, relieved that his first week was finally over. So far, it wasn’t that bad here at all. He was very grateful for this easy transition. He texted Jongho to let him know he’d meet him outside on the front quad, and smoothly followed the rest of the sea of students who were just as eager to escape the last class of the day and start their weekend. He was looking down at his phone when he felt someone run into his right shoulder, he immediately looked up to begin apologizing, but the words died on his lips when he recognized that it was Yunho who ran into him. His eyes were still dark with an untold emotion, and a small surge of irrational fear sparked in Mingi’s chest. He gasped when he felt two hands grab his shoulders, forcefully steering him out of the way of the flow of students and towards a much more emptier hallway adjacent to the main one. Once the brunette was sure he was far enough away, he let go of Mingi, who was still frozen in place with a bewildered expression. 

“How do you know him?” The taller boy demanded, eyes still cold but calculating as he examined him carefully.

Mingi was still recovering. “W-What?”

Yunho snapped his fingers way too close to his face, and Mingi blinked in surprise. “Kang Yeosang, how do you know him?”

Mingi blinked again, slowly this time, as he processed the question, the shock finally wearing off. His eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, a frown on the edges of his lips, “Yeosang? I-I sit with him at lunch, he’s been really nice to me?” It came out more of a question instead of a statement.

Yunho was silent for a moment, his expression still calculating. He wondered what was going through his head. Finally, Yunho seemed to visibly relax, leaning away and putting more distance between the two. He sighed, running his fingers through his hair, before shaking his head.

“You’re not that close,” He finally said, seeming to come to a mental conclusion, “Of course, that makes sense.”

“Yeah,” Mingi agreed, still confused as hell, “But, why are you asking me about him?”

The taller stared at him for another long moment, before his expression changed completely. The cold, contriving expression morphed into one of secret amusement, and a mischievous smirk appeared on his lips. This was such a stark contrast from the normal mundane, detached looks Yunho usually wore that it threw him for another loop. But the look on his features could’ve never prepared Mingi for the words that came next.

“I want you to start dating me.”

“. . . _ Excuse me?” _ Mingi was sure he didn’t hear that correctly. Maybe his comprehension in Korean wasn’t as good as he thought it was, because there is no _ way _this guy just uttered the words he thought he did.

“But not for real,” His smug grin widened, “Just think of it as a favor, after all...you owe me.”

“O-Owe you? For _ what _?!” Mingi blurted, he was so shocked that he forgot he was supposed to be intimidated by him.

Yunho looked annoyed now, as he rolled his eyes, “Why are you so loud? I’m standing right next to you. But anyway, I’m reminding you of a favor you owe me,” He took a step closer, cocking his head slightly, “Or did you already forget that I saved your life?”

Mingi eyes widened, because no he didn’t forget that. He wasn’t sure he could ever forget that, but he was surprised Yunho remembered. Or maybe not “remembered,” but that he would consider saving him for being flattened by a truck simply a _ favor _instead of a heroic act. As if saving his life was something of a convenience for him, like a coupon he could cash in later. This thought, actually made Mingi kind of pissed.

He took a step back, forcing some more distance between him and the taller student. He frowned at Yunho, “We don’t even know each other, why would you want to date me?”

“I don’t _ actually _want to date you,” Yunho retorted pointedly, and Mingi pretended not to feel to sting in his chest at his words, “What I want is Yeosang’s attention, he’s the one I’m interested in.”

Mingi’s confusion deepened. Suddenly, the words Wooyoung said to him on his first day echoed back in his head. _ ‘If anything, I’d say he’s a bit more closer to...one of my other friends.’ _Was Yunho the person Wooyoung was talking about? Mingi almost couldn’t believe it. He couldn’t imagine Yeosang having anything to do with Yunho. Their personalities were far too different.

“So Yeosang is the one you really like,” Mingi said slowly, “But you want to fake date me? Why can’t you just ask him directly?”

“Our relationship with each other is...complicated,” Yunho said after a long moment, “I can’t just ask him out directly, it wouldn’t work. As amazing as he is, he’s very oblivious, almost to a fault when it comes to my feelings for him. In order for him to realize that I could be a potential boyfriend for him, he needs to see me with someone else.”

Mingi’s eyes widened, he wasn’t expecting so much honesty out of the brunette. “Well...why can’t you ask someone else other than me? What about Wooyoung?”

“He’s dating San, that wouldn’t make any sense.” He replied with another eye roll.

_ He is?? I guess that makes sense, _ Mingi thought dejectedly. “There’s seriously no one else you can ask? I’ve only been here a week, _ nobody _ would believe it.”

“Actually, it makes perfect sense to choose you,” Yunho said, taking another step forward. Mingi took another step backwards, “I couldn’t ask anyone else, they’re too caught up on the rumors and already have their prejudices for me. But you don’t, I can tell you don’t.” He moved closer again, and Mingi flinched when he felt his back pressed firmly against the lockers behind him. There was nowhere else to move, and he mentally cursed himself for easily letting Yunho trap him. His heart was beating so hard that he could feel it in his ears, and the proximity did not help. Yunho was now looking at him with another hooded expression that sent a shiver down his spine. 

“I know, deep down, you’re not scared of me,” Yunho’s voice dropped low to almost a whisper, “You’re like Yeosang in that way, you don’t just blindly accept other people’s beliefs. You have to experience it for yourself first, and I like that about you.”

Mingi tried to object, but the words kept getting caught in his throat. He was getting uncomfortably warm again due to their proximity. “But I-”

“Plus, I think if anything you’re more intrigued by me,” Yunho smirked, purposely interrupting him, “You don’t think I noticed those stares? It was basically written all over your face.” Mingi flushed at that, had he really been _that _obvious?

Also, his mind was spinning. Yunho noticed his curiosity, he even compared him to Yeosang like Wooyoung did. He knew this _ entire _ time that Mingi was intrigued. Small little warning bells were going off in the back of Mingi’s mind. As tempting as this was, he knew it was a bad idea. A _ terrible _ idea! Yunho was _ using _ him to get something else he wanted. If anything, this should confirm what Hongjoong and Seonghwa and practically everyone else says about what type of person he is. It shouldn’t fascinate him even further! What was wrong with him?

“I think we can both get what we want out of this,” Yunho spoke up again, pulling Mingi away from his frantic thoughts, he still had that enchanting grin on his features that could make anyone fall to their knees. And he was still so _close _to him. God, why did Mingi have to be such a panicking gay? “I get Yeosang’s attention, and you get to satisfy your curiosity. So, what do you say?”

Mingi panicked, he was just staring at him expectantly, a satisfied smile on his face as if he already knew the answer. “I...um…”

Yunho looked annoyed again, “How about I give you the weekend to think it over?”

The ravenette bit his lip, and nodded slowly.

“Fair enough,” The taller student said with a small sigh, before locking gazes with that intense stare of his, “You meet me here first thing in the morning. If I don’t see you, I’ll come looking for you,” He paused to scrutinize him from head to toe before letting out a soft snort, “So don’t keep me waiting, _ Song Mingi _.”

Finally, Yunho pulled away from him, and left Mingi standing there in the hall lost and confused. It took Mingi a long time to realize; he never actually gave Yunho his name.


	3. the face behind the mask

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for the sweet comments and the kudos! this is where my fluff and angst™ tag comes in btw.

“What took you so long?” Was the greeting he got from his younger cousin, who stood there with his arms crossed, a petulant expression on his face. “I’ve been waiting for like ten minutes.”

“Sorry, I got uh...caught up.” Mingi replied breathlessly, and it wasn’t because he ran all the way out to the quad to meet Jongho. He could feel the small, but familiar burning sensation inching its way up his chest, weighing down on him like and anchor with an itchy feeling rising in his throat. He cleared it a couple times, as casually as he could, before the feeling finally subsided. 

Jongho’s eyes were like a hawk, they didn’t miss anything. His expression quickly morphed from indignant to concerned, “Are you okay?”

Mingi restrained the urge to roll his eyes. Yes, his cousin had only his best intentions at heart, like practically everyone else who asked him that question, but he still didn’t like it. Or really, the deeper implication of it. The concern mixed with thinly veiled pity, and he _ hated _being pitied. He’d had enough of feeling sorry for himself back home, and he didn’t want to feel that way here. Wasn’t that his whole point of moving anyway?

The ravenette nodded, absently tugging on the collar of his uniform again, “Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

Jongho raised an eyebrow incredulously, “Why is your face red?”

Mingi swallowed the panic, “Uh, it’s really hot in there.”

“...right.” The younger replied dryly. But thankfully, he didn’t ask anymore questions because Mingi was terrible at lying.

The two boys continued their walk back towards their home, Jongho talking about all the things that happened in his chemistry class, when Mingi’s eyes locked onto a familiar figure standing at the end of the street. He was leaning against the wall, smoking a cigarette with a rather peaceful expression on his face. His cheeks hollowed out as he inhaled the smoke, and Mingi wasn’t sure why he was so engrossed in that small little action, until dark eyes met his. 

Yunho winked at him, before blowing out the gray smoke.

Mingi’s heart did a funny twist in his chest, and he quickly looked away, ashamed at being caught staring _ once again. _ They passed by the taller student relatively easily, Mingi looking straight ahead the entire time, but he could feel those eyes bore into his back. He wondered why Yunho was just standing there (smoking while he was still in his school uniform by the way), and then it hit him that this was the cafe Wooyoung worked at. _ Of course, _ Mingi thought with slight relief, _ he was just waiting for him. He’s not following me. _

Once they crossed the street, and the two were a safe distance away from the person who was responsible for all the chaos swirling in his mind, Mingi nudged Jongho’s shoulder, effectively interrupting him from whatever he was talking about. 

“Hmm?” The shorter brunette asked, turning to glance at him.

“Do you...uh,”The ravenette felt his face heat up again, and he tried his best to calm himself down.

It felt a little embarrassing, asking his cousin about Yunho, but he just needed some more information. If anything, it would help him reach a decision about his proposal, right? Well, that seemed reasonable enough in his mind so that’s what he was gonna go with. 

“Do you know anything about a senior named Yunho?” He asked carefully, trying to display a tone of casual curiosity.

Jongho completely froze in the middle of the pathway. Someone almost ran into him from behind, and bitterly grumbled something at him as they swerved around him, but the brunette didn’t seem to notice. He was too busy staring at Mingi with a wide, wary expression.

“Of course I know who that is. Why do you wanna know about him?”

Mingi scratched the back of his neck, pointedly not looking at his cousin’s face. _ Just be casual, be casual. _He shrugged, “I heard a lot about him over these past few days, I was just curious.”

Jongho mentally debated his response for a long moment, before finally deciding to give in with a sigh, “I don’t know much, but I _ do _know he’s pretty much infamous around school. Smoking, drinking, he’s so freaking tall too. That dude is built like a skyscraper! But...everyone kind of avoids him...especially after the _ incident _.” He explained, putting much emphasis on the last word.

“What is it?” The ravenette asked, completely forgetting about being casual. He was eager for any kind of information at this point.

Jongho rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “Well, the rumor is last year Yunho got into a fight with this one kid that used to go to school here. He beat him up so bad that he had to be taken to the hospital, he got suspended for like, a month.” Mingi’s eyes widened with horror, but Jongho’s brightened with awe, “Isn’t that crazy? I mean, he was already super intimidating before ‘cuz of his height, but wow! That guy was in the hospital for like two weeks, and then we never heard from him again.” The brunette shook his head, “Anyway, moral of the story is; you don’t want to piss him off. It’s best to avoid him, like everyone else does. He likes to be a lone wolf anyway.”

“But he’s not _ completely _alone,” Mingi felt the need to point out, “Those two guys are always with him.”

“Oh, San and Wooyoung?” Jongho nodded, “Yeah, I guess. They’re pretty much just like him too, except without the height. I think they stole a car once.” His cousin looked thoughtful for a moment, before shrugging, “Anyway, that’s all I know on him.”

The ravenette nodded in understanding, and they continued the rest of their walk.

* * *

Mingi walked through the threshold of his room, closing the door shut with his leg as he dropped his bag on the ground next to his desk. 

He flopped onto his bed, the mattress springs squeaked softly as his weight landed on it, his face pressed into his favorite soft plushie. He let out a loud sigh of relief, the first week of school finally being done. His mind began to drift to an intense dark gaze, lips stretched into a teasing smirk, and soft brown locks when his phone suddenly vibrated on the nightstand next to his bed. He flinched, sitting up right away as he checked the caller ID and realized that it was his mother.

“Hey mom,” He answered softly, sitting upright in his bed, the plushie curled between his arms.

_ “Hi sweetie,” _ His mother’s gentle voice flitted over the speaker, _ “How have you been doing over there?” _

“I’ve been doing well,” He replied with a soft chuckle, “It’s definitely different from Orlando.”

_ “Aww honey, I miss you so much.” _

He looked down at his fingers, “I miss you guys too.”

_ “How has school been? Do you have good teachers? Did you make any friends?” _

The corners of Mingi’s lips lifted at that. Well, there was a reason Mina and his mother were siblings. “I have, they seem really cool. I’m going to hang out with them tomorrow at some arcade place.”

_ “Ah, that’s a relief! You’re fitting in so nicely. And how’s my nephew? Isn’t he a freshman this year?” _

Mingi nodded, more out of habit because his mother really couldn’t see it. “Yeah, he’s doing fine. Aunt Mina’s been keeping us pretty busy so I wouldn’t have time to think about how much I missed home. Heh, I guess that’s a good thing, right?”

His mother huffed, _ “We’re definitely coming to visit in two months. Oh, I can’t stand being away from my baby.” _

“Mom,” Mingi groaned, but secretly appreciated the sentiment. 

She chuckled on the other end, _ “Well, I don’t want to keep you. I just wanted to call in and check on you. Tell Mina and Jongho I said hi, and don’t forget to take your medicine.” _ There was an undeniable switch in tone, her voice less light and airy, more tinged with somber sobriety. A small shock of guilt pulsed in Mingi’s chest, and he grasped the plushie in his arms tighter. _ “I really want you to take care of yourself, Mingi.” _ And just like that, her voice was back to normal, _ “I’ll call you back soon, I love you. Oh- and your father loves you too~” _

“Love you too, mom.” He replied, a little breathlessly.

When the call was ended, he dropped back to his pillow, staring up at the ceiling. The burning sensation from earlier suddenly surged inside of him, and he let out a loud, almost painful cough as he bolted up again. His lungs were on fire, and he couldn’t breathe correctly. Panting, he made his way over to his desk, searching for the familiar small, dark bronchodilator. He shook it a few times, before pumping the air. Slowly, the burning sensation melted away and he felt like he could breathe again. He still had a couple of wet coughs before his throat finally cleared. He felt light-headed and dizzy, his sense of balance off and Mingi shakily reached for the corner of his desk.

His legs eventually gave out on him, and he felt himself drop to the carpet. He sat there for a couple of minutes, practicing the breathing exercises that had been drilled into him. When the vertigo finally passed, he felt himself curl up into a ball, his throat burning as silent tears streamed down his face. It was moments like this, where he was painfully reminded on why he was here in the first place. And it burned him just as much as the unbearable pressure in his lungs. 

* * *

The next day, Mingi woke up with puffy cheeks and a minor headache. He practically dragged himself to the bathroom to wash his face and take a quick, but needed shower. By the time he was finished, and stepped out of the bathroom while rubbing a towel over his damp hair, he smelled the warm aroma of food cooking from downstairs. His stomach grumbled eagerly in response, if there was one thing Aunt Mina was known for, was her excellent cooking.

She was humming to some song on the radio as he came downstairs, stirring a steaming pot as she worked. Jongho was in the living room, playing a video game. She beamed when she saw the ravenette.

“Good morning Mingi! Breakfast is almost done, just give me five more minutes!” She called out.

The taller nodded with a smile, before plopping down on the couch next to his cousin. Jongho was so focused on the screen that he didn’t bother looking at him, he just murmured a low greeting with a nod. Mingi watched him for a couple of minutes, before he suddenly remembered something. He nudged the shorter, persistently, until finally Jongho paused the game and shot him an annoyed look.

“Do you know how to get to G-Plex?” He asked him.

Jongho nodded, “Yeah, it’s not that far from where we live. Why?”

“My friends want to meet there today, but I kinda forgot to ask for directions.”

Jongho nodded, reaching for his console again, but Mingi stopped him with another question.

“Will you come with me?”

“What? No.”

The ravenette frowned, “Why not?”

“Because,” Jongho said, raising a finger as if he was making an enlightened point, “I don’t feel like it.”

Mingi rolled his eyes exasperatedly, “C’mon man, I don’t wanna show up by myself.”

“You’re literally going there to meet up with your friends. _ How _can you be there by yourself?”

“I’m still new to Seoul,” Mingi whined, his eyes widening in a puppy face expression he spent many years mastering, “_ Please _ Jongho, just this once. We’re cousins, doesn’t family mean anything to you?”

The brunette made a sound somewhere between a snort and an exasperated sigh.

“Oh don’t worry, he’s coming with you.” Mina’s voice suddenly appeared behind them, and both boys jumped as the woman watched them with an amused expression.

_ “Mom.” _Jongho groaned.

“Oh don’t try that with me, it only works on your Aunt,” She said, pointedly thumping her son on the head with the wooden spoon on his head, “Mingi’s only been here for three weeks, how do you expect him to know where everything is already?”

“I-” Jongho swallowed his own words, and sighed again, “Fine. When do you want to go?”

Mingi checked his phone, “We’re meeting up in three hours.”

He nodded, pointedly glaring at both of them, “Okay, can I get back to my game now?”

Mina smiled triumphantly, satisfied with the outcome as she walked back into the kitchen.

* * *

Like Jongho had said, the arcade wasn’t far from where they lived. Mingi gawked as he stepped inside, quickly surveying his new surroundings while the shorter more or less pouted. He was also right about a lot of people from their school coming to hang out here, he recognized a lot of kids who even waved at him in greeting. He waved back sheepishly.

“Well, this is it.” Jongho said, gesturing to the room unenthusiastically.

Mingi nodded, wondering where his friends were. He didn’t have to wonder long.

“Hey Mingi!” A bright voice called from somewhere to their left, and both boys turned to see Hongjoong approaching with a kind smile.

The shorter brunette looked a lot different from how he normally dressed. His uniform was always clean and pristine, immaculate as should be expected for their grade’s president. Now he was in baggy sweatpants and a t-shirt, and Mingi had to blink to make sure that was actually him. It was...different, definitely refreshing.

He politely introduced him to Jongho, who stood staring with comically wide eyes at the senior, and Mingi had to hide his amused smile. It seems he wasn’t the only one who was shocked to see Hongjoong so laid-back. After Hongjoong agreed he’d take Mingi back home, Jongho nodded in appreciation and walked away, taking not-so-sneaky peaks behind him to confirm that what he was seeing was actually real.

“I didn’t know you were related to him,” Hongjoong noted, clearly amused by the younger’s reaction.

Mingi chuckled, “Yeah, he’s practically my younger brother.”

The shorter nodded, and they both walked over to join Seonghwa and Yeosang at an air-hockey table. They looked to be in a heated competition, animatedly hitting the puck while smack-talking each other. When Yeosang finally scored the winning point, Seonghwa groaned dramatically. Mingi noticed both of them were dressed-down too, but even in casual clothes they were all still so handsome. Yeosang smiled at him, and Mingi immediately smiled back. He was suddenly reminded of Yunho’s confession, and decided that it made sense he liked Yeosang. Who couldn’t? He was so nice, charming, and ridiculously attractive.

They took turns playing air-hockey for a bit, before moving to racing games, and then a shooting video game where you needed to destroy aliens in the jungle. Seonghwa was very vocal when it came to games, but no matter how adamant he was on winning, Yeosang was just too good at everything. Before he knew it, two hours had passed by, and the gang were all sitting in a booth sharing a pepperoni pizza. From where they were sitting, they had a view of one-third of the entire arcade, especially the area where the video games and basketball hoops were set up. 

So the ravenette’s eyes immediately caught the familiar, bright (almost platinum) blonde hair that was accompanied by a dark jacket and equally dark jeans: Wooyoung. Mingi’s been around long enough now to know wherever Wooyoung was, San wouldn’t be too far behind. They always hung out with each other, but that wasn’t the thing that aroused Mingi’s curiosity, not really. It was whether the tall, dark and usually gloomy individual would come along with them. And as he suspected, he was right.

A small fluttery feeling erupted in his chest, and Mingi wasn’t sure why. He quickly looked away from the three, focusing back on the conversation that was happening around him. He played with his too salty fries for a moment, before sensing the familiar of being watched. Discreetly, he glanced over to the basketball hoops, and found that sure enough, Yunho was watching them. Another flutter in his heart, and Mingi was a little bit sure why it happened but he pretended not to care. But there was something different about his usually piercing gaze. It lacked the intensity that is usually carried, and his eyes were rounder, eyebrows scrunched together in a way that looked like...longing? Mingi had never seen that look on Yunho before, it was even more surprising than the calm expression yesterday. He never knew someone could look so _ hopeless _before. His expression reminded him of a sad puppy, abandoned by their owners and left on the side of the street in a cardboard box.

Mingi realized he wasn’t staring because he was sitting there, he was staring because _ Yeosang _was here. The loneliness and absolute yearn in his gaze was so strong that Mingi had a hard time believing Yeosang had never noticed before. It was obvious, painfully so, that Yunho wanted to be with him. It wasn’t just because Yeosang was really pretty or very nice, there was some deeper connection between the two that Mingi hadn’t figured out yet, because the tall brunette looked like he would move the stars in the sky for Yeosang. 

He looked like he was in _ love. _

Well, maybe, Mingi wasn’t completely sure. All he knew was that his heart was too big and full of empathy to ignore Yunho’s hardship. He’s had plenty of crushes on guys before, but he didn’t think he ever fell in love with one. He had no idea what that felt like, but he wanted to, maybe one day. He glanced at Yeosang, to see him laughing gently at something Seonghwa said. His soft brown eyes flicked from Seonghwa to some far point behind him, before giving him his full attention again. That glance was suspiciously close to the direction of where Yunho was. Mingi frowned, did he notice that Yunho was here too? Did he see the longing in his gaze, the absolute desperation to be with him? Did he even care? It was hard to believe Yeosang of all people would emotionally manipulate someone. But then again, what did he know? He’s only been here a couple of weeks, while they’ve had plenty of history.

Mingi glanced back in the direction of the hoops, to find San and Wooyoung, but no Yunho. He was gone as quickly as he appeared. Maybe it hurt too much, Mingi thought, to be around the person you loved when they didn’t feel the same. He was still a bit lost, but at least he had a little bit more clarity on how Yunho really feels. There was definitely more to him than the mischievous troublemaker status he has at school. 

After they finished eating, they stayed around the arcade for about a half-hour before Seonghwa announced he had basketball practice, and Hongjoong had a meeting with the student council at school. They parted ways outside of G-Plex, and Yeosang was kind enough to walk Mingi back home. The boys walked in comfortable silence, but the memories from earlier were still plaguing Mingi’s mind. He felt like he needed to get some sort of signal, that Yeosang was possibly interested. He couldn’t agree to help him if Yeosang wasn’t. It wouldn’t be fair to either of them. He just wasn’t sure about how to ask. He could feel his palms began to sweat, and he wiped them on his jeans quickly. Asking Jongho was one thing, but asking the source of this whole thing was completely different.

_ For god’s sake, please be casual. _He thought to himself.

“Hey Yeosang, do you mind if I ask you uh, kind of personal question?” Yeosang’s eyes widened, he raised his eyebrows in bewilderment and the ravenette internally cringed. _ So much for casual. _

He nodded after a moment of thought, “Yeah, what’s up?”

“I...well, I noticed Seonghwa always teases you about Yunho,” Mingi went on carefully, watching the shorter brunette’s expression. “Is it true?”

He noticed something flash in his eyes, and he quickly looked down at the sidewalk, a rosy tint to his cheeks. He blushed, did that mean there was some truth? Yeosang was quiet for a long moment, long enough for Mingi to tell him that he didn’t have to answer him, but before he could get the words up, Yeosang finally looked up at him, straight in the eye.

“Neither of them understand Yunho like I do,” He started, and Mingi immediately knew who ‘them’ were, “Our relationship is...complicated and a bit personal. Let’s just say, Yunho helped me when I was at a really low point in my life. For that, I will always be grateful to him.” 

His eyes were sad, but there was a soft smile on his face, he was clearly reminiscing about something. His answer was vague but Mingi didn’t want to question him further. He just nodded in understanding, and they continued their walk, both of them lost in deep thought.

* * *

On monday, Mingi walked with Jongho to school. 

As he approached the front quad, he involuntarily glanced around to see if he could find him. He didn’t and a part of him felt relieved, while another part of him felt disappointed. Jongho parted with him when he met up with his friends, and Mingi was going to look for his when he felt a hand grabbed his shoulder. It wasn’t in a rough way, but he still almost jumped out of his skin at the contact. He turned around to find himself facing Yunho, and a part of him wasn’t even surprised. 

Yunho’s mask of indifference was back on, his eyes were cold as he stared at him with a half-smirk, “I told you I’d come looking for you.” His tone sounded amused.

“I know,” Mingi mumbled, pulling up the strap of his backpack. He looked around nervously for a second, “Can we talk somewhere more private?”

Yunho’s smirk widened, “Sure.”

His hand dropped from his shoulder, and Mingi pretended not to miss it as he followed the taller student to an empty classroom. Yunho sat on top of a desk, his lanky arms crossed as he stared at him expectantly. Mingi just looked at him, really  _ looked  _ at him, past the cold expressions and apathetic voice. He looked for the small pieces of emotion he’d secretly seen, and tried to put it together.

“One thing,” Mingi finally said, breaking the silence, “I need to know that you’re not using me to use him. Yeosang’s a really good person, he doesn’t deserve that.”

Just as he expected, Yunho’s eyes darkened with something like anger. “I would  _ never  _ do that to him.” His voice was low and would probably be menacing to Mingi if he wasn’t testing him. “Who are  _ you _ to even insinuate-”

The ravenette nodded with a short sigh, “Then I guess, my answer is yes.”

The anger completely disappeared from his face, his eyes widened in shock. “What?”

Mingi almost laughed, but he caught himself. Yunho looked like a lost puppy.  _ I guess he didn’t catch on that I was testing him,  _ he thought with hidden amusement. 

“I’ll be your fake boyfriend.” He said, in such a straight and direct voice that it surprised even himself. The words sounded so strange to say out loud.

Yunho just blinked at him, before his eyes narrowed with wariness. He looked him up and down, “You sure?”

Mingi nodded again, he didn’t trust himself to say anything else. He was kind of losing his nerve already.

Yunho’s eyes shined in a mischievous way, and he took a step closer. “And can you guarantee, that you won’t catch feelings for me? As flattering as that is, that would be counter-productive.”

Mingi tried to be annoyed but he couldn’t. All he could do was look him straight in the eye and keep his voice steady, “Yes, I won’t fall for you.”

Yunho’s grin widened, and he held out his hand, “Then we have a deal, Song Mingi.”

Mingi shook his hand, all the while wondering exactly what he just signed himself up for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay this chapter is finished! i'm pretty happy with how it turned out, and I hope you guys got a little bit more background on both yunho and mingi. it was still kinda vague but i couldn't give everything away. thanks for reading, comments would def be appreciated on what you think!


	4. yunho: the storm of chaos

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! here again with another update!

Mingi is slightly breathless by the time he makes it to class, due to him half walking and half running down the hall. He’s silently thankful for the fact that their teacher stepped out and quickly slid into his seat next to Hongjoong, who looked at him with slight concern.

“You okay?” He whispered.

Mingi nodded quickly, not daring to say anything more. His mind was still reeling a little, but he was also trying to catch his breath.

Hongjoong frowned a little, not convinced at all, but before he could ask any more questions, their teacher walked back.

By the time lunch rolled around, the exciting events from earlier that morning were finally starting to simmer down inside Mingi. He walked and chatted with Hongjoong happily as they walked over to their regular table where the rest of their group was waiting. The two boys slid into the open seats, Mingi reaching into his bag to unwrap a homemade lunch from Aunt Mina. He was so distracted by this task that he didn’t notice the cafeteria falling into a strange silence, or the way Yeosang’s eyes widened from across him. The lunchbox slipped through his fingers, and the ravenette cursed his clumsiness under his breath. He bent down even further to pick it up, but longer, more slender fingers beat him to it.

Eyes widening, he looked up to see who the fingers were attached to, stunned to see that is was Yunho standing there, that same amused expression on his face. San and Wooyoung of course, were right behind him, equally mischievous looks dazzling in their eyes as they smirked.

_ “What are you doing here?!” _Was what Mingi wanted to blurt out, but the words slipped through him like sand through his fingertips. He was just left there, gaping with a shocked expression and a pounding heart.

“Here you go babe,” Yunho said, smoothly grabbing his outstretched hand to place the fallen lunchbox in it. Mingi’s fingers twitched at the soft contact.

_ “Babe?” _ Someone echoed from behind in confusion, it might’ve been Seonghwa.

Mingi was just as confused.

“Yeah, you didn’t tell them yet?” Yunho asked, smoothly sliding into the seat next to Mingi. He grasped the hand that the ravenette wasn’t using to hold his food and intertwined their fingers pointedly. Another flurry of butterflies in his stomach.

“Tell us what?” Hongjoong spoke up, his eyes wide with confusion and wariness. He glared balefully at the tall brunette, and if looks could kill, Yunho would definitely be six feet under. But the brunette didn’t even pay Hongjoong any mind, his sole focus was on the person sitting _ next _to Hongjoong. The person who was deliberately refusing to make eye contact with either of them.

“It’s nice to see you again, Mingi.” Wooyoung hummed, a cheshire grin painting his lips. He took the seat next to Yeosang, and San followed him. They too, had their fingers intertwined, “I don’t think you guys officially met, this is my boyfriend San.”

The boy had dark hair like Mingi’s, but with deep, crimson red streaks. He had sharp features, a contrast to Wooyoung’s soft ones, and big eyes that darted to Mingi that seized his heart in his throat. _ Just another ridiculously attractive guy at this school, huh? _He thought sardonically.

San used his sharp chin to nod at him, a wild smirk of his own forming on his lips, “Hey.”

All Mingi could do was wave weakly in return.

“No seriously, what the hell is going on?” Seongwha demanded with clear confusion. He looked between Wooyoung and San, and then at Mingi and Yunho, especially their intertwined hands. “Why are_ they _ here?”

“You know, you really don’t have to be so rude,” Wooyoung teased the taller blonde, “You know our names.”

Seongwha turned to retort sharply at the shorter blonde, but hesitated when he noticed San’s fierce gaze and stiff position. His whole body bent forward slightly, looking ready to jump into action at any given moment. Seongwha quickly looked away.

San snorted, the tension melting from his form as he leaned back again, “That’s what I thought.”

Wooyoung sighed, shaking his head, “This is why Yeosang’s my favorite.”

The boy in question perked up at the mention of his name, his cheeks dusting a soft shade of pink.

“What do you want, Jeong?” Hongjoong pressed the question, his tone stern and serious. The atmosphere was so thick with tension Mingi felt like he could cut it with a knife.

“I can’t believe you haven’t told them yet, _ babe,” _ Yunho drawled in what was meant to be a teasing tone, but it only made Mingi more nervous and Hongjoong glare even harder. The ravenette had to resist the urge to gasp out loud in shock when Yunho suddenly brought their intertwined hands to his face. He leaned in to plant a soft, what could be seen as _ affectionate _, kiss on Mingi’s middle knuckle, “We’re dating.”

He never broke his gaze on Yeosang when he said it, even when Seonghwa snorted loudly in disbelief and Hongjoong nearly shouted _“What?!” _Yunho wasn’t quiet about this announcement, and since the cafeteria was so quiet because they were engrossed in what was going down at their table, everyone heard it. And even if they didn’t, they got the gist by what that kiss meant.

Flurries of whispers immediately broke out between tables, everyone staring and pointing with wide eyes. Mingi wasn’t sure how to feel, too many emotions were going through him at once. He didn’t think Yunho would make their ‘relationship’ go public so soon, he hardly had any time to prepare. The only people who didn’t look completely flabbergasted by the news were Wooyoung and San, who only grinned as they sent each other knowing looks. 

Hongjoong stood up from the table, “You’re lying!”

Yunho finally broke his silent stare-off with Yeosang, to give Hongjoong a passive look, “Am I?” 

His hand squeezed his for a second, probably on purpose to make a point, but all it did was make Mingi’s face flush.

“Mingi, is this true? Are you really…” Seonghwa trailed off, not even believing his own words.

Suddenly, it felt like all eyes were on him. And not just within his friend group, the _ whole _cafeteria was definitely staring at him, silently waiting for him to confirm or deny this entire thing. He looked helplessly at Yunho, to see that he was still looking at Hongjoong.

“Go ahead Mingi,” Yunho started, finally turning to glance at him. He had a small smile on his face, his expression meant to be warm and friendly, but the coldness in his eyes smothered any type of warmth from his voice. “Tell them the truth.”

Apprehension stirred in his chest and threatened to rise in his throat, but he swallowed it back down. His mind was still racing, and all he could do was bow his head sheepishly, nodding to confirm. The whole cafeteria burst into whispers again.

“What the hell? When? _ Why?” _Seonghwa interrogated him.

Mingi’s mouth opened, but once again, the words slipped away from him. “Um…”

“We knew each other already,” Yunho was quick to intervene with cool confidence, “We met a couple of weeks ago, when Mingi first got here. He was so shy, but so cute. We really clicked right away.”

Mingi could tell his friends were still reeling, they still couldn’t believe this entire thing just happened. 

“Well,” Wooyoung announced, “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m starving.” He turned to Mingi, “Wanna come with us to go eat off-campus?”

“I think he’d rather stay with his friends.” Yunho responded before he could even open his mouth. He let their hands fall from their bind, standing up from where he was sitting. Mingi blinked in panic, looking up at him and Yunho shot him a look. He read it loud and clear:_ say something to convince them. _

“I’ll see you later, babe.” He said with a cheeky grin, before stuffing his hands into his pants as he turned on his heel and followed his friends out of the cafeteria.

Out of the storm of _chaos_ he single-handedly created. It was silent for a long, uncomfortable moment at their table, even when the other students around them started conversing normally again. Mingi knew without even having to look up that they were all staring at him. 

He just didn’t know what to say. Yunho gave him little to no time to prepare anything ahead, and a part of him was pissed off at him for that. But he pushed it to the back of his mind, he still needed to wrack his brain for a good excuse. 

“Mingi,” Hongjoong said, appearing to be much more calmer now that they were gone. Mingi hesitantly glanced up at him to see the shorter brunette staring down at him with shock, “Is it really true? Are you really dating him?”

“...Yeah.” He mumbled lamely.

“Dude, why didn’t you tell us that sooner?” Seonghwa asked.

The ravenette cleared his throat, “I uh...didn’t want to tell you guys because well, you don’t really like him. I was scared you guys wouldn’t want to hang out with me if you knew...I’m sorry, maybe I should go.” Mingi said, quickly standing up and packing up his things. A small but firm hand on his shoulder stopped him, and he blinked down at Hongjoong in surprise.

The shorter brunette looked concerned and remorseful, “No, I’m sorry we’d ever made you feel that way. We’re not gonna abandon you.”

Mingi's eyes widened in surprise, "Really?"

“Yeah. We may not like Yunho or his friends, but we’re not assholes.” Seonghwa added.

“We just wish you’d...told us about it, but I guess I see why you tried to hide it.” Hongjoong said softly.

Mingi’s eyes widened even more, “Wait, so you guys...are you okay with it?”

Seonghwa crossed his arms and snorted, shaking his head, “If that’s who you like, that’s who you like.”

Hongjoong nodded in agreement. “We aren’t his biggest fans but, we like _ you _Mingi. And I don’t want you to feel like you have to hide a part of yourself because of us.”

Mingi nodded, “Thank you, this actually means so much to me.” And it really did, to see Hongjoong and Seonghwa rise above their prejudice. If it was only for his sake.

Hongjoong smiled at him reassuringly, and Mingi was starting to feel less anxious when Seonghwa suddenly stated;

“Where did Yeosang go?” 

Both Mingi and Hongjoong blinked in surprise, before glancing at the empty spot where Yeosang had been sitting.

“He was just here a minute ago, where did he go?” Hongjoong wondered.

“Maybe to the bathroom?” Seonghwa guessed.

Mingi stayed silent, because he was sure Yeosang’s disappearance was not by accident.

* * *

Mingi ran into Yeosang, on his way out of the bathroom. The other boy's eyes widened slightly, but smiled at him a moment later.

“Hey, are you okay?” The ravenette questioned, “You disappeared during lunch.”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just wasn’t feeling so well.”

Mingi got the sense that he wasn’t being completely truthful. He nodded anyway, “Oh, okay. I’m sorry for the way things went down earlier,” He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, “I didn’t know Yunho was going to do that.”

Yeosang chuckled lightly, “That’s just Yunho for you.”

Mingi nodded, “Still, I-”

“Hey babe,” He heard Yunho’s voice approach from somewhere behind him. He wrapped an arm around his shoulder loosely, even leaning forward for a quick peck on the cheek. Whatever Mingi wanted to say to Yeosang before had been completely drained from his memory. The taller brunette glanced away from him, “Hey Yeosang.”

Yeosang nodded slowly, “Hi Yunho.”

“Mind if I join you guys on your walk to class?” 

Yeosang shrugged, “No, go ahead.”

If Mingi thought the atmosphere's tension in the cafeteria was bad, this was on a whole other level. Yunho had wrapped his hand around Mingi’s, knitting their fingers together, but the whole time his eyes were on Yeosang. The calculating look in his eyes was apparent, as he watched the shorter with a small frown. He didn’t seem to be responding in the way that Yunho wanted him to. Once they made it to their classroom, Yeosang bid them both goodbye, before walking into his own. Yunho once again, dropped their hands like he was holding something poisonous. 

“Is it working?” Mingi asked after a moment of stiff silence.

Yunho’s smile was smug, “We talked after I left the cafeteria.”Mingi figured as much. He pushed away the pang in his chest at the thought of that being the real reason why Yunho left earlier. “We’re getting progress.”

* * *

Later that day, Mingi waited in the front quad for Jongho. He kept checking his phone anxiously, trying to distract himself from the people around him. It was obvious students were talking about him, their whispers and pointed gazes were too evident to ignore. In a way, he should’ve expected it, since Yunho’s blatant announcement in the cafeteria. It was just still, very hard for him, he never liked being in the center of attention. He didn’t like the idea of people having an opinion on him that he couldn’t control, or just judging him without actually getting to know him. 

_ I guess, this is what Yunho has to deal with. _He thought to himself with a frown.

“Mingi!” Someone shouted across the quad, snapping him out of his inner musings and also gaining the attention of half the students on the quad. It was Jongho thankfully, running towards him with comically wide-blown eyes and a gaping mouth. 

Mingi nodded to the shorter, adjusting the strap on his backpack, “Hey Jongho, are you ready to go-”

“Is it true?” The shorter brunette immediately questioned, his eyes still wide, his chest rising and falling rapidly because he had ran here, “Is really true? Are you _ really _ dating Jeong Yunho?”

Mingi bit his lips, consciously debating on whether he should tell Jongho the truth. It had already been a struggle for him to convince his friends, he was sure there was no way he’d be able to lie to Jongho. He was too smart, too observant, with eyes like a hawk that could detect deception from a mile away. 

So the ravenette sighed deeply, “You can’t tell anyone else, you have to swear.”

“Can’t tell anyone?” Jongho raised an eyebrow incredulously, “I think it’s a little too late to try and hide it when the whole school basically saw him kiss you.”

Mingi’s face flushed at that, but he shook his head. “It’s not what you think it is, but if I tell you, you have to swear you won’t tell anyone. I’m serious, Jongho.” He said with an austere sincerity, and Jongho sobered up quickly.

His lips were pressed into a firm line, and after another moment, he nodded slowly.

Relief surged inside Mingi’s chest, and he was suddenly aware of their environment again. “I can’t tell you here, let’s just go.”

Jongho nodded, and both boys walked through the quad in silence. They walked past school grounds, crossing the street over to the busy block of pedestrians, and walking the ten minutes until they finally arrived at their home. Ming unlocked the door, grateful to find that Mina wasn’t home yet, and kicked off his shoes as Jongho stood in front of him, arms crossed as he waited expectantly.

“Well?” He intoned, after another moment of long silence.

Mingi sighed again, trying to collect his whirling thoughts. “It’s...it’s not real.”

“What’s not real?”

Mingi looked his cousin in the eyes, “We’re not actually dating! I’m just helping him, Yunho likes someone else.” His chest felt a whole lot lighter after admitting it out loud. Jongho’s eyes widened again, and if they were under better circumstances, Mingi would’ve laughed at him. 

“Wait,” He said, eyebrows scrunched together in puzzlement, “He likes someone else? Then why is he-”

“It’s a bit complicated,” Mingi replied tiredly, “Basically, he’s been trying to get this person’s attention for a long time, but they don’t see him that way. Or, at least they haven’t admitted to. Anyways, I’m going to help him get this person’s attention by dating Yunho to show him how good of a boyfriend he can be.”

Jongho’s gaze was unreadable, he was quiet for a long time. “So basically...what you’re telling me is...you’re trying to get that person jealous.”

The ravenette’s face flushed again, and he stared down at his shoes, “I m-mean, not entirely. I’m just trying to show them Yunho’s potential.”

“Do you know him? The person Yunho likes?”

Mingi was caught by surprise with that question, he nodded after a moment, but wouldn’t say more than that. 

“Why are you helping him anyways? When did you even start talking to Yunho?” Jongho asked him. His eyes seemed to brighten in realization, “Wait, is that why you asked me about him the other day?”

Mingi nodded, “I...uh, it’s a favor I owe him.”

_ “Favor?” _

The ravenette blushed at the way Jongho looked at him, his voice clearly implied something. “No, i-it’s not like that! He saved me, on the first day of school, he stopped me from getting hit by a truck because I wasn’t paying attention.”

“Mingi, what the hell! How did you _ not _see a truck coming?”

The ravenette sighed again, running his fingers through his hair exasperatedly, “I had a lot on my mind, okay! I got distracted.”

“When did that even happen? Why didn’t you tell me?” Jongho demanded.

“It happened when you were walking with your friends, I- look, that’s not even relevant to the story! Just...just know that I’m only doing this because I owed him. It’s all temporary, we’re only doing this until Yeo- uh I mean,” Mingi shook his head, “Okay, ignore that last part I said.”

Jongho’s eyebrows raised in curiosity, but he didn’t say anything else. 

“So yeah,” Mingi finished, sinking down on the couch tiredly. He’s had a _ long _ day. “That’s basically it.”

“...Do you actually like him?” Jongho asked, his voice much softer than it usually was.

The ravenette blinked up at him, quickly schooling his panicked expression. “What? No, of course not!”

Jongho shot him a skeptical look.

Mingi crossed his arms, looking back at him defiantly, even though his heart was pounding in his chest. “I told you, it’s only a favor! Besides...he’s way too bossy and cocky. Definitely not my type.”

“Mingi,” The brunette started, “Do I really have to tell you how bad of an idea this is?”

“You don’t really _have_ to.”

“You have to like him at least a little bit to agree to something like this.” He pointed out.

Mingi bit his lip, looking down at his hands. When Jongho realized he wasn’t going to say anything else, he just sighed.

“I just hope you don’t get your hopes up, you have a big heart Mingi. Too big for someone like Yunho, he’ll hurt you if you let him.” His cousin warned him, his voice somber.

“I won’t get hurt.” Mingi replied, in a voice so soft that it was almost a whisper. And both of them hoped that those words would remain true. 

* * *

By the end of the week, the sensational news died down. There were fewer whispers and stares as Mingi walked the halls, and that made him feel better. It was a bit awkward around his friends the first couple of days, especially since Yunho, Wooyoung, and San insisted on sitting at their table, always holding his hands and making none-too-subtle flirty comments at him while simultaneously taking any chance he could to get a rise out of Hongjoong. But true to their words, Hongjoong and Seonghwa kept talking and interacting with him, and it made him feel a lot better that they meant what they said. In fact, he was walking Yeosang and Seonghwa to his last class of the day. Usually Yunho would walk with him (because he never missed an opportunity to be around Yeosang and embarrass Mingi) but he hadn’t shown up to lunch today. Mingi hadn’t seen him all day actually.

At least things were starting to return to some sort of normal. Or, at least the ravenette thought it was, until a random student with floppy black hair approached them. He looked young, probably a freshman like Jongho. His eyes were wide and he was panting a little bit.

“You’re Mingi, right?” He asked, his eyes glancing at all three of them before finally settling on Mingi.

“Yes?” Mingi said slowly in confusion.

His eyes brightened, “Did you hear what happened? Yunho got into a fight!”

_ “What?” _He blurted, feeling himself stiffen.

The student nodded, “Yeah, it happened out in the quad. They dragged him to the principal’s office. He’s been there for like, fifteen minutes.”

Mingi’s mind was swirling with internal conflict, and he looked helplessly at Seonghwa and Yeosang. Yeosang’s eyes looked sad, he was looking down at the floor. Seonghwa patted the ravenette on the shoulder;

“Go ahead, we’ll cover for you.”

Mingi nodded gratefully, “Thank you,” He turned to the student again, “Where is he?”

The student lead him through the hallways, and Mingi swallowed nervously at the sound of the bell ringing above them. He didn’t like the idea of being late to a class, but at least the halls weren’t so crowded. Besides, this took precedence, since he was Yunho’s boyfriend. Well, that’s what he tried to convince himself as to why his heart was pounding so hard he could feel it in his ears, and an alarming amount of apprehension was forming inside him at the thought of Yunho being seriously hurt. 

When they finally arrived at the principal’s office, Mingi peered through the large glass windows to see what was going on. Principal Lee’s door was shut, but sitting in the office was San and Wooyoung, both of their disheveled hair and uniforms confirming they were also involved in the fight. 

“Do you know why they were fighting?” Mingi asked, turning to the brunette.

He shrugged, “He’s not in my grade, but I think his name is Jisung. He…” The brunette suddenly looked away, a bit sheepish as he hesitantly said, “He said something about you.”

Mingi blinked in confusion, “Me?”

“Yeah,” The brunette scratched the back of his neck, “He made a sly comment about you and uh...didn’t realize Yunho was close enough to hear him.”

_Did he get into a fight...because of me? _ That took a while to sink into his brain properly, and he had to shove the warm feelings that threatened to bubble up inside of him at the thought. _ Of course he would, you’re his ‘boyfriend.’ It didn’t mean anything, it was just another way to convince everyone. That was all. _ Still, he couldn’t help but think about how Yunho would usually only show off when Yeosang was around. And Yeosang wasn’t there… _ No, _ He had to remind himself, repeating back the words Jongho told him, _ don’t get your hopes up. All it will do is hurt you. _

The door to Lee’s office opened, and Mingi was immediately pulled out of his thoughts as the familiar, tall brunette walked out of the office. His face was cold and stoic, radiating intimidation that would make people part like the Red Sea around him. He glanced at San and Wooyung, saying something to them, but neither boys could hear them from outside the office.

Mingi turned back to the student, “Thank you…” He trailed off awkwardly, wanting to ask for his name, but wasn’t sure how to go about it. 

The brunette smiled, and Mingi was suddenly hit with the realization of how handsome he actually was. “You’re welcome, and it’s Hyunjin.”

The ravenette nodded gratefully, “Thank you Hyu-”

“What are you doing here?” Yunho’s voice interrupted him, and both boys turned to see that taller brunette standing there with his arms crossed. 

Now that Mingi was closer, he could see the small cuts that scattered his cheeks, chin, and forehead. There was a dark bruise blooming on his cheekbone, and a gash at the edge of his bottom lip. Mingi’s gaze was so focused on that gash that he didn’t even realize he was just staring at his lips, until said lips curled slowly into a smug grin. Mingi’s blushed, and looked away.

“I told him what happened, I just thought he should know.” Hyunjin answered.

Yunho glanced at Hyunjin, his disinterested stare changing as something flashed in his dark eyes. It was too quick for Mingi to tell, but Yunho stood straighter, his lips pressed down into a firm line as he reached out and wrapped an arm around Mingi’s shoulders, bringing him flush up against him as he glared down at Hyunjin. Mingi’s train of thought diminished at the warmness of the taller’s body, and he knew his face was on fire.

“He’s here now, you can go.” Yunho sneered, and Mingi frowned at him.

Hyunjin got the hint, and nodded quickly, mumbling a small goodbye to Mingi before walking away. Once he was out of sight, Yunho let go, practically pushing him away as he stretched one of his arms, then proceeded to roll his neck with a soft groan.

“You didn’t have to talk to him like that.” The ravenette murmured lowly.

Yunho glanced at him, “Talk to him like what?”

Mingi resisted the urge to roll his eyes, “You know what you did. You were acting...possessive.”

The taller brunette snorted, “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“I’m not,” Mingi argued back, crossing his arms, “And if I’m wrong, why did you beat that guy up for saying something about me?”

Yunho’s expression flashed in surprise, before he quickly schooled it. “I didn’t do it for _ you, _ I did it because he was annoying as hell.”

“Right.” Mingi replied dubiously.

Yunho rolled his eyes, “Believe whatever you want to believe, I don’t care.” He rubbed at his jaw, and Mingi let his annoyance dissipate as he moved closer to get a better look at his face.

“Are you okay? Does it hurt?”

Mingi tried to touch the bruise on his cheekbone, but the taller student swatted his hand away. “Little bastard got a lucky hit in, that’s all.”

“You should go to the nurse’s office.” The ravenette suggested.

“I’d rather go home.” Yunho retorted.

This time, Mingi could not hold back his eye roll as he suddenly grabbed Yunho’s hand. He ignored the quickened pace of his heart as he dragged the taller down the hallway, Yunho complaining loudly. When they finally got to the nurse’s office, Mingi looked around but saw no one was there. He sighed, leading Yunho over to one of the seats by the desk.

“Sit down, Yunho.”

The taller brunette raised an eyebrow in amusement, “Assertive, huh? Didn’t think you had it in you.” 

Mingi glared at him until Yunho finally let out a resigned sigh and sank into the seat. He turned towards the desk, rummaging around through the school’s supplies until he found what he needed, and pulled them all out; band-aids, a small bottle of hydrogen peroxide, and some cotton swabs. Yunho looked over with vague curiosity, but when Mingi turned around he looked away, pretending to be interested in the ‘How To Sneeze Properly’ poster hung up on the wall. Mingi carried the supplies over, laying it out on the low coffee table next to them. He untwisted the bottle, and dipped the cotton in before facing Yunho. 

The ravenette froze for a moment, paralyzed under the fierceness brewing in his dark eyes. He was so close to him, but it wasn’t like all the other times Yunho’s invaded his space. He never really noticed how nice Yunho’s eyelashes were, or how even when bruised his skin shone radiantly under the fluorescent lights. Strangely, this felt a lot more intimate, and Mingi quickly looked away from his eyes, choosing to stare at gashes on his knuckles instead as he slowly reached out with the cotton swab. Yunho was surprisingly silent the entire time as Mingi cleaned his wounds, maybe he picked up on the weird atmosphere that was between them too.

It still amazed him that he’s met someone taller than him, his hands slightly bigger and longer than his own. They were warm too, the skin pulled tight enough that veins were visible as he flexed them. Mingi tried not to think about how much he enjoyed holding Yunho’s hand, but it was impossible. He was a weak gay after all. When he finished with his hand, he moved on to the small cuts on his face, and then the gash on his bottom lip. Yunho was still silent, his eyes looked far away, as if his body was present but his mind was somewhere else. But he looked relaxed, just like that day Mingi saw him smoking, He found himself liking the ‘relaxed Yunho’ a lot more.

But there was also something creeping up in the back of his mind, and it made him feel uneasy. Mingi realized after another moment, it was guilt. He didn’t like the fact that Yunho got hurt because of him, even if the taller brunette didn’t want to admit it. He pulled away, staring down at the cotton swabs and empty band-aid wrappers laid out on the table. 

“Yunho,” He said softly. Yunho’s eyes cleared from whatever trance he was in, and he blinked at him, “If we’re going to continue with this agreement, we need to set some ground rules.”

“Like what?” Yunho asked after a moment.

Mingi looked him in the eyes, “No more fighting, I don’t like fights.”

Yunho looked like he wanted to protest, but also sensed that Mingi was being completely serious, so he didn’t. He just crossed his arms with an indignant huff.

“No smoking either,” Mingi continued, “It’s not good for you anyway. I also don’t like it when you do certain things without telling me, like what happened on Monday. If we’re going to make this work, then we both have to be on the same page. Oh, and please don’t provoke my friends, especially Hongjoong.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to write this all down? Print out a contract for me to sign?” Yunho retorted dryly.

Mingi ignored his sarcasm, “Those are my terms, take it or leave it.”

Yunho’s eyes narrowed, “Fine, whatever.”

Mingi nodded, standing up and moving to throw the trash away while returning the supplies he borrowed. He grabbed his backpack off the table, sliding it on and headed towards the door.

“Where are you going?” Yunho asked, making the ravenette freeze in his steps.

“Uh... back to class.” 

“Oh.” The brunette mumbled, looking down at his bandaged knuckles. “See you around then.”

“Yeah, see you.” 

With that, Mingi pushed open the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! Also the bookmarks/kudos! I really appreciate them.


	5. oh, the joys of being seventeen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW thank you guys so much for the increase of comments/votes/kudos and 1K views wtf!! i appreciate it so much!   
I bring you another chapter of yungi shenanigans (with the help of mina and wooyoung) plus some more backstory!

_ It was always so bright, _ the ravenette thought to himself as he sat in the stiff chair in the waiting room. Except for a few health posters with smiling kids hanging in various locations, the walls were bare with a dull, white color. Maybe that was the reason it was always so bright that it was hard to stare without squinting? If that wasn’t nerve-wracking enough, there was always the mysterious, antiseptic smell that wafted around the place. Mingi’s nose scrunched up at the scent, he hated that scent. It smelled _ too _clean, too sterile, and too cold. All the feelings of warmth and pleasantness being sucked away, and left in its void was a frigid, anxious, and uncomfortable environment.

To put it simply, Mingi hated hospitals.

The ravenette jumped at the sound of a little boy screaming across from him. He couldn’t have been older than two, squirming in his mother's arms while she frantically tried to quiet him down. Two other kids were playing below them, racing two brightly-colored cars across the carpet that had a racing track printed on it. Another child who was sitting on the carpet sneezed loudly, and messily wiped his nose before rubbing it on the carpet.

Oh, the joys of being seventeen. Clearly old enough to feel out of place, sitting in a waiting room with toddlers, but not old enough to legally be seen without an adult companion. Mingi sighed and looked away, choosing to stare out the large windows instead.

“Thank god you two are older,” Mina muttered from beside him, “You guys were cute as babies but, I don’t think I could do _ that _ ever again.”

The ravenette chuckled softly at his Aunt’s comment, before dropping his gaze down to the phone that vibrated in his hands. His eyes widened when he glanced down at the contact name: _ Yunho. _He felt his heart jump start in his chest without his consent, and he quickly opened up the message app to read the whole thing.

** _Yunho:_ **

** _Where are you right now?_ **

Mingi raised an eyebrow, half in confusion and the other in curiosity. He couldn’t tell him exactly _ where _he was right now, that would raise too many questions that he wasn’t prepared to answer at the moment. The ravenette bit his lip in contemplation, not even realizing that the woman sitting next to him was gazing at him curiously.

She leaned in,“_ Ooh, _ who is he?” 

_ “Gah!” _Mingi blurted out, and jolted back in shock as he threw his Aunt an exasperated look, “Aunt Mina, what was that for?”

The older woman raised an eyebrow, “I was just curious...why are you acting like you’ve seen a ghost?” Her eyes narrowed with a knowing smile, “Could he possibly be...a crush?”

“No!” Mingi spluttered, holding his phone close to his chest so she couldn’t peek, “He’s just a guy from school. He uh, asked me about our homework. That was it.”

“Mingi sweetie, I’ve known you for 17 years. Not only can I tell when you’re lying, you’re just straight-up _ terrible _at it.” Mina deadpanned. “So what if you have a crush? There’s nothing wrong with that!” The older woman seemed to mull over her words for a moment, and paused, her face filled with concern, “Wait...is it because he might not like boys?”

Mingi’s face flushed, and he let out an exasperated huff. Why couldn’t the nurse just call him back so he didn’t have to have this conversation? 

“No, that’s not it.” He answered, “He...he likes someone else.”

Mina’s face fell even further, “Oh, that’s too bad.” She patted his shoulder comfortably, “Well, no need to get hung up on him! There’s plenty of fish in the sea, you’ll find someone for sure.”

“Thanks, Mina.” Mingi mumbled sheepishly. 

One of the nurses at the front called her name, and both of them glanced in that direction, before looking back at each other. Mina gave him a soft smile, and another encouraging pat before she stood up to walk to the front. When she was a good distance away, Mingi lowered his phone, staring down at the message again. He mentally suppressed any feelings that threatened to rise up at the thought of Yunho wondering where he was. He’s never texted him first before. Instead, he replied:

** _Mingi:_ **

** _Out for a bit. _ **

He waited for the brunette’s reply, but was interrupted by another nurse entering the room and calling his name. He turned off his phone, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath to calm down the apprehension inside of him. When he opened his eyes again, he stood up and followed the nurse and his aunt to the hallway in the back. 

Doctor Jung was a very handsome man; high cheekbones, nice tawny hair that lay just above his eyebrows, and warm, brown eyes that contradicted greatly with the cold, sterileness of the rest of the hospital. Mingi wasn’t really sure how to handle the fact that this was his new doctor, but he was very nice, and shook his hand when him and his aunt walked into the room the nurse directed them to. Aunt Mina, on the other hand, seemed _ very _satisfied with this new revelation. 

“Wow Dr. Jung, you are so handsome. How old are you?” She asked him.

“Mina, please.” Mingi groaned, but the doctor chuckled good-naturedly.

“I get that a lot,” He said with a dimpled smile. _ God, what do they put in the water here? _“I’m 28, finished med-school, and my residency here a year ago. They liked me so much they offered me a position here.” His eyes swept across the board in his hands, “Hmm, Song Mingi correct?”

The ravenette nodded.

“Alright, let’s go through your check-up.” 

Dr. Jung went through the list of standard check-up requirements, and when he finished he sat down at the computer near the counter, typing in his report as Mingi sat on top of the medical bed. Once he was done, he turned back to face Mingi and Mina.

“So,” He cleared his throat, “I guess it’s time to address the elephant in the room,” He looked at Mingi with an expression that threw the teenager off. It wasn’t exactly pity, but there was a degree of sadness in his eyes when he said, “You were diagnosed with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease when you were eleven. So far there were only minor cases of bronchitis here and there, until you were rushed to the ER last year due to inflammatory lungs which in turn, almost resulted in lung failure. Upon further investigation, your doctors realized the lungs were inflated by chronic bronchitis, and learned you could be at risk for Emphysema or worse without proper medication. You were prescribed a long-acting bronchodilator, correct?” 

Mingi nodded, looking down at his hands in his lap. He knew Dr. Jung didn’t mean any harm from it, it was simply his job, but he couldn’t help the shiver that went up his spine at the memory. The feeling of not being able to breathe; the itchy, suffocating sensation that kept building up inside his chest, it felt like his lungs had been set on fire. It was the worst attack he’d ever experienced in his life. He remembered it all; the almost paralyzing fear at the thought of dying. He had been so scared that day. 

Mingi flinched at the hand that touched his thigh gently, and he looked up to realize it was Aunt Mina. She got up from her seat immediately, her eyes glazed with a more frantic concern as she watched him carefully.

“Are you okay, Mingi?” She asked softly.

_ Breathe...in and out.. _

Mingi closed his eyes again, taking in as much air as he could, feeling the itchiness in the back of his throat, and he coughed a bit. When he was calm enough to open his eyes, he looked back up at her. Both her and Dr. Jung were standing near him, all watching him cautiously, and he_ hated _it. He hated feeling so helpless, like he couldn’t do anything without the fear of his lungs stop working and he’d keel over. 

“I’m fine.” He whispered, blinking back the wetness behind his eyes. He was _ not _going to break down in the middle of a hospital room. He was done crying over it, things were the way they were and there’s nothing he could do about it. 

“Doctor, can you give us a moment?” Aunt Mina immediately said.

“No, no I really am fine. I just,” He trailed off, his gaze dropping back to his hands, “I hate thinking about that day.”

“I’m sorry,” Dr. Jung responded sincerely, “I didn’t realize-”

“It’s okay,” The ravenette assured him, raising his face again with the small smile he’s practiced for situations like this, “So, I guess it’s time for me to get scanned, huh?”

Dr. Jung looked unsure at first, he watched Mingi for a long moment, before finally nodding his head slowly. “Yes, follow me.”

Mingi and Mina followed the young doctor down the hall to another small room, where a nurse gave him a thin, bright blue blouse to change into. Once he was done changing, he was guided to a larger room where a large, white circular machine with a gurney resided. He laid himself down carefully, glancing at the nurse who was standing next to the CT. 

She smiled at him comfortingly, “It will only take a few minutes, sweetie.”

Deep down, Mingi knew this, it wasn’t his first scan nor would it be his last, but he nodded with his practiced smile anyway. He laid his head down, staring at the sterile white ceiling and felt his nose scrunch again. The nurse rolled him into the machine, and he closed his eyes. 

When it was over, he opened his eyes, the nurse was cheery as she thanked him for his cooperation, he was just glad it was over. The ravenette was led back to the small room where he could change his clothes. He found himself back in the original room he was in for his check-up, when Dr. Jung came back in with a charming smile.

“Good news, from our scans it looks like it hasn’t developed into Emphysema.” 

Mina let out a sigh of relief from beside him.

Mingi looked up at him, “Really?”

The doctor nodded, “Yes, just remember to practice your breathing exercises and use your bronchodilator when your lungs feel agitated. I’ll see you in a couple of weeks for your aclidinium fill, but let me know if any issues come up.” 

“We will, thank you Dr. Jung.” Aunt Mina said, getting to her feet to bow gratefully.

Dr. Jung bowed back politely, “Anytime.”

Once they left the hospital, Mingi could feel the tension melt away from his body. They decided on getting groceries after his appointment, so they walked towards the supermarket a couple of blocks away. The ravenette was so distracted by the thoughts swirling around in his head that he was caught completely off-guard when he felt an elbow nudge his shoulder. 

He whined in pain, throwing his Aunt an accusing look.

The older woman just smiled at him softly, “They said there was no inflammation in your scans, you’re getting better.”

Mingi shrugged, “As better as someone with crappy lungs can get.”

Aunt Mina rolled her eyes playfully, wrapping an arm around the taller boy’s shoulder, slightly yanking him down as she pulled him into a side-embrace. “Progress is better than nothing, it's a cause for celebration! We’ll have bulgogi tonight.”

Mingi wanted to protest, but his stomach grumbled eagerly at the thought of grilled meat. So he enthusiastically planned their celebratory dinner with his Aunt as they walked into the supermarket.

* * *

When the duo finally returned back home, hands full with heavy bags of food, Mina banged on the door so that Jongho would hear it (he agreed to help her cook since he skipped the doctor’s appointment and the grocery shopping). The door opened slowly, and Mingi nearly dropped the bag of tomatoes and onions when he recognized the tall, handsome brunette standing behind the door with a smug expression.

_ “Y-Yunho?!” _

“That’s my name,” The taller replied sarcastically, his gaze instantly fixing on the woman standing next to him, “You must be Mina, it’s nice to meet you. My name is Jeong Yunho,” he said with a polite bow, his whole demeanor changing right before Mingi’s eyes. Mingi’s gaze snapped to Jongho who was standing behind Yunho.

“Well, this is definitely a surprise,” Mina said with a small chuckle, “It’s nice to meet you too. You’re so polite, how cute. Are you a friend of Jongho’s?” She asked, looking between her son and the taller brunette.

_ What is going on?! _Was the message Mingi was silently directing towards his cousin.

Jongho’s eyes widened, and he shook his head with a shrug, as if to say: _ There’s nothing I could do about it. _

Yunho’s grin widened, “Actually…”

_ Oh god, no. Please don’t say it. _Mingi begged him silently, shaking his head frantically since he was behind Mina and she couldn’t see him. Yunho either didn’t notice or didn’t care.

“I’m here for Mingi.” He finished, nodding in the direction of the ravenette.

Mina turned around slowly, shooting him a look which he immediately knew meant she would question him later about it. He was definitely _ not _looking forward to that. She turned back to Yunho with a bright smile, “Of course! Just give us a minute, we went out shopping.” She said, brandishing the bags in her hands.

“Oh, here let me help you with that.” Yunho said, bending down to take the bags from her fingers.

“No, it’s okay! You don’t have to.”

“I insist,” He said with another sweet smile, a dimple appearing on his right cheek. Mingi felt like his legs were going to turn to mush and he would collapse. 

Yunho took the bags and headed towards the kitchen, Jongho quickly following behind. Mingi prepared to move too, but stopped when Aunt Mina turned back to face him. The ravenette stiffened, preparing himself for whatever lecture the older woman would give him, but he froze when he saw the wide, excited smile on her face.

“He’s so _ cute!” _She mouthed enthusiastically, pointing in the direction of the kitchen.

“Mina, please.” Mingi whispered, “Don’t say anything, okay?”

“Is he the boy from earlier?” She whispered back.

Mingi purposely didn’t make eye contact, “No.”

“Oh my god!” She squealed. 

“Auntie, _ please!” _Mingi begged her.

She stopped squealing, her expression sobering and the ravenette let out a sigh of relief. She drew two fingers across her lips like a zipper, and winked quickly, before heading inside the house. 

“If my lungs won’t be the death of me, _ this _certainly will.” He mumbled to himself lamentably. 

He walked into the kitchen to find Yunho busy with taking out their food while chatting with his aunt. Jongho stood, a bit awkwardly by the counter, and the ravenette saw this as the perfect opportunity to pull him aside and figure out what the hell was going on. So he did, grabbing the shorter brunette by his collar and tugging him into the living room to have a bit more privacy. Mingi stared at his cousin pointedly, opening his mouth to question him, but before he did, Jongho raised his hands in defense.

“Now before you start freaking out on me, you should know none of this was _ my _ fault! He just showed up at the door, I thought it was you guys, but I remembered you were still out shopping. I was just as surprised as you were when it was Yunho behind the door!”

“And you just let him into our house?!” Mingi whisper-shouted.

“He said he wanted to talk to you about something,” Jongho protested, crossing his arms indignantly, “Also, I don’t know about you, but I did not forget the fact that he put somebody in the hospital last year. Or the fight that happened just last week! I was _not_ just gonna tell him to get lost and piss him off. I have some sense of self-preservation.”

Mingi let out an exasperated sigh, but he couldn’t put all the fault on his cousin. He needed a moment to think about his next course of action, but of course fate couldn’t let him have that. Yunho appeared around the corner, his friendly facade still in place as he casually placed an arm around Mingi’s shoulder. Jongho’s eyes widened, glancing at the place where his arm was, before staring back up at the taller brunette. 

“So this is where you guys were,” He said, amusement flashing in his gaze as he nodded at Jongho, completely ignoring the terse atmosphere around him. “Your mom is looking for you, I think she needs your help cutting apples.”

As if on cue, all three boys began to hear Mina call his name loudly. Despite his tension, Jongho let out a snort, shaking his head as he walked around the corner back into the kitchen. Once he was gone, Mingi expected Yunho to drop his arms from around him like he always did, but he didn’t. A few seconds went by, before Mingi decided to just do it himself, to which the brunette raised an eyebrow inquisitively.

“We need to talk.” He said firmly, looking him in the eye.

A wicked smirk curved Yunho’s lips, all amiable warmth disappearing from his features as he dropped his facade completely. His voice dropped an octave as he suggested, “Should we go to your bedroom, then?”

The provocative tone was not lost on either of them.

He knew Yunho was just messing with him. It was all fun and games for the taller boy, but Mingi’s face still flushed against his volition, “N-No! We’re going outside.”

The taller brunette just shrugged, his indifferent expression falling into place as they both made their way back to the door. Once it was shut behind them, Mingi turned to glare at the handsome brunette, who stood with his arms crossed, waiting expectantly.

“First of all, didn’t we agree to be on the same page? Why do you keep doing things without telling me?” 

Yunho rolled his eyes, “I _ did _tell you, I texted you.”

“You asked me where I was, and I told you I was out-”

“Yeah, then I told you I would come by.” The taller brunette retorted.

“You- wait, _ what?” _Mingi blinked at him, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion, “No you didn’t.”

Yunho pulled his phone out of his pocket, opening their conversation and showing it to the ravenette. Mingi squinted at the words;

** _Yunho:_ **

** _ Woo, san, yeo, and I are going to the cafe for a group project. I’m coming to get you at 1._ **

_ What? _ The confusion only deepened as Mingi took out his own phone, going through his messages only to find that...he _ did _send him that. He stared at the message for a moment, wondering how in the world he managed to miss that. 

“Well, you satisfied now?” Yunho asked, pulling him out of his trance.

“Oh,” Mingi chuckled sheepishly, feeling the heat of embarrassment crawl up the back of his neck, “Heh, I guess I didn’t see it.”

“Check your texts more often then, Song.” The taller brunette checked the time on his phone, “They’ll be there soon, are you ready to go?”

“W-wait, _ now _?” Mingi stammered.

_ “Yes _, now.” Yunho retorted, grabbing his hand, and Mingi tried to ignore how easily their fingers intertwined. 

He was able to clear away enough of the Yunho-inducing fog to remember something, and he stopped letting Yunho tug him forward. “Wait! I can’t just leave yet, I need to tell Mina!” 

The taller brunette shot him an incredulous look that screamed _ ‘Really?’ _but let him go with an annoyed sigh. He ran back towards their door, and was startled when it suddenly swung open, Mina standing in the threshold with a mischievous grin.

“Trying to sneak off with your boyfriend I see,” She teased, and Mingi felt like his soul might actually leave his body. “He told me by the way, I can’t believe you didn’t tell me sooner! He’s such a cutie-”

“Aunt Mina,” Mingi said, trying to change the subject, “I’m uh, going out with him to hang out with some friends. I’ll be back later on.”

The woman nodded, cheshire smile never leaving her features, “That’s fine. Have fun, sweetie... but not _ too _much.” Her dark eyes twinkled with amusement. 

The ravenette spluttered some type of response, and his aunt chuckled softly before shutting the door again. 

“It’s funny to watch you get flustered.” Yunho intoned, practically out of nowhere. 

“Let’s just go.” Mingi mumbled, his face on fire, ignoring Yunho’s snickers from behind him.

* * *

Yunho dragged Mingi down the couple of blocks to the cafe he first went to with his cousin on that first, fateful day of school. The two teenagers walked into the cafe, immediately greeted by the cool gust of air conditioner, and the aroma of coffee and chocolate. There was a small bell that sat over the top of the door, and it dinged when they entered. Some customers, who were either standing in line or relaxing at the cushioned tables, turned to glance at the newcomers. Mingi felt himself flush with self-consciousness and tried to quickly walk away, but was stopped by Yunho putting a hand on his shoulder. It was a gentle gesture, but firm enough to be effective. The ravenette glanced up at the taller brunette, who seemingly ignored or was unaffected by the stares of others as he gazed around the cafe until he found what he wanted.

True to his word, San, Wooyoung, and Yeosang were all sitting together at a spot near the back of the cafe, their drinks along with notebooks and laptops splayed out around them. Yunho confidently walked up to the table, sitting down in the seat right next to Yeosang. Mingi had no choice but to sit in the empty chair across from him, next to the blonde who’s eyes brightened at their arrival.

“Well, if it isn’t our favorite new lovebirds! What took y’all so long?” Wooyoung smirked, “Too busy making out?”

Mingi blushed furiously while Yunho snorted, “We showed up, didn’t we?”

Wooyoung ignored him in favor of nudging the ravenette beside him, “I’d be careful if I were you Mingi, you don’t know where his lips have been. Or his di-”

The ravenette spontaneously choked on air, or maybe it was his heart, since it decided to jump in his throat. He could feel the heat radiating off his face as he tried to pull himself together. Wooyoung and San snickered while Yunho flipped them both the middle finger.

“Cut it out.” He said firmly.

All the blonde did was roll his eyes in response, before grinning at the furiously heated ravenette, “Relax, I’m just teasing you.” 

How the hell could one relax after that? Now he was trying to chase away certain thoughts about the tall brunette he most certainly _ didn’t _ want to have sitting two feet away from him. Despite all of the meticulous consideration Mingi put into his decision to fake-date Yunho, he never really thought about the intimate side of being in a relationship. His list of relationships were (embarrassingly) short, so he wasn’t surprised it slipped his mind but...he wondered just how far Yunho was willing to go to keep up with this whole charade. So far, they’ve held hands a lot (which always sets off a reaction inside of him) and the mischievous brunette managed to sneak in a couple of quick kisses for show (his cheek, his nose, his fingers). But they haven’t really _ kissed _yet, and Mingi wasn’t sure if he should feel relieved about it or not.

Sure, sometimes Yunho would act flirty, but it was either for show or because he liked to mess with him...right? He had to be, he even told Mingi he liked watching him get flustered. All those words and touches didn’t really mean anything to him, at the end of the day it was a means to an end. And as much as Mingi’s brain kept reminding him, his stupid heart wouldn’t listen. He sighed internally, _ after this is over I need to get myself an actual boyfriend. _

The ravenette shook his thoughts away, trying to focus back on the conversation in front of him. Yunho asked something about their project, and Yeosang was explaining the details. He tried to tune into the conversation, but was distracted once again by Wooyoung nudging him on his forearm. Mingi glanced at the shorter blonde, who was still looking at him with concealed amusement in his big brown eyes. Oddly enough, It reminded him of his aunt.

“Wanna go get something? You look like you could eat.” He nodded towards the front of the cafe.

Well, actually he _ was _kinda hungry. Seeing as he was supposed to eat when he got back from his appointment...but that obviously didn’t work out. Mingi nodded, a small grateful smile curving on his lips as he and Wooyoung got up. The blonde said something about it to the group, but he might as well just been talking to San alone, seeing as he was the only one who acknowledged they left. 

As they were standing in line, Mingi squinted at the board hanging above the counter, trying to decide what he wanted. Now that Wooyoung mentioned it, he could feel his stomach grumbling a little.

“You make it so obvious you know.” Wooyoung said with a dramatic roll of his eyes. It seemed he really liked doing that.

Mingi turned to him with raised eyebrows, “Huh?”

The blonde crossed his arms as he stared at him pointedly, “You know what I mean. You couldn’t scream _ ‘Hey, I’m not really dating Jeong Yunho but I kinda have a thing for him so I agreed to do this’ _more unless you literally wore it on a shirt and walked around in it.” Wooyoung deadpanned.

Mingi sighed too, “So you know about the agreement.”

_ “Of course _I do,” The blonde replied, looking almost offended at his statement, before a cheshire grin spread across his face, “Who do you think gave him the idea?”

The ravenette’s eyes widened, “Wait, _ what? _You told him to date me?”

“No,” The blonde chuckled softly, “All I did was suggest he get Yeosang’s attention in a different way, since the way he’s been trying for the past five months wasn’t working out so well.”

Mingi nodded at that and then paused, a thought came to mind, “Hey, do you know why they’re like that?”

The blonde quirked an eyebrow, “Who, Yunho and Yeosang?”

He nodded.

Wooyoung’s gaze dropped to the floor, and for the first time since Mingi has known him, the blonde looked hesitant and unsure. When he finally found his gaze again he spoke, “It’s not really my business to tell.” There were no mischievous grins or twinkling eyes, it was the most sober expression he’s seen Wooyoung make. 

Mingi bit his lip as he nodded in understanding, feeling a bit awkward by the silence that followed. The line moved up a bit, only a couple more people in front of the duo. But Wooyoung being Wooyoung, couldn’t let the silence last very long. 

“Hey,” He said, getting the taller boy’s attention again, that familiar grin back on his face, “Wanna know a fun way to make your relationship look more legit?”

Mingi knew Wooyoung was scheming something, but the calculation in his gaze wasn’t cold and blunt like Yunho’s. It was sly and playful, and genuinely piqued his curiosity. He wondered if it was a good idea.

“This is a _ terrible _idea.” Mingi grumbled, holding a large strawberry smoothie in one hand, and a sandwich with two straws that Wooyoung shoved into his other one as they walked back to their table. 

“Actually, it’s a pretty cute idea,” The blonde remarked with an amused grin, “And why are you so worried anyways? You’re just doing this for Yunho’s sake, right? Well, unless…”

Mingi shot Wooyoung an annoyed look, which the blonde just laughed at as they finally reached their table. This time, Yeosang looked up.

“Hey, where were you guys?”

Yunho looked up too.

Mingi’s mouth opened, but he couldn’t seem to get the words out. He felt like he was paralyzed, so Wooyoung had to do the talking. “Oh, we just went to get Mingi some food.” He steered them both back to their seats. 

Yeosang nodded with a smile, busying himself with his laptop again. San pulled up a chair next to him, looking down at his laptop too, while Yunho drew random doodles on a blank page of his notebook. Mingi ate his sandwich almost immediately, relief filling him as his hunger was satiated. But afterwards, he stared at the strawberry smoothie for a moment, then the extra straw that was in the palm of his hand. He glanced at Wooyoung who was watching with him an expectant expression. His words from earlier came back to his mind; _ you make it so obvious. _

Well, if this was how he could make it look more genuine...The ravenette silently took a deep breath, before putting on what he hoped was an affectionate smile as he slid the second straw towards Yunho. “Wanna sip?”

The taller brunette stared at the straw for a moment, before leveling his gaze to the ravenette as he raised a perfectly arched eyebrow. His gaze was indecipherable, but there was a small curve to his lips as he unwrapped the straw and leaned in. He forgot how his body reacted to being in close proximity with Yunho, and he felt his heart jumpstart in his chest again. The brunette didn’t really help either, not breaking eye contact the entire time. They were so close, only an inch between them as they drank from the same smoothie. On the outside, Mingi kept his calmest composure, but on the inside, he was reeling. Yes, it was a cliche, and he shouldn’t feel so excited about sharing a smoothie with Yunho, but he couldn’t help it. These little moments where he could admire Yunho up close were his favorite ones. He took the time to appreciate the details of Yunho’s gentle features, the small cuts and bruises from the fight last week were fading, and the gash on his bottom lip was healing- those were all good signs. But now his gaze was on his lips again, and a tiny part of him wondered just would it feel like...

It couldn’t have been more than a minute, but it felt like an eternity before Yunho eventually pulled away. He even had the audacity to wink at him as he said, “Thanks baby.”

All Mingi could do was nod as he stared down at the rest of his smoothie. There was a stupid, small little smile on his face he couldn’t fight. He discreetly glanced over at Yeosang to see that the boy had been watching, he switched back to his laptop when Yunho leaned back again to watch him. Mingi then glanced at Wooyoung, his smile turning a bit smug as he shot him a look that said: _ See? Not so obvious now, huh? _

“I told you it was a good idea.” Was all the blonde mouthed back.

* * *

Later that day, after they finished up their work for their project, Mingi found himself walking with Yunho back to his house. 

“You don’t have to walk me back, you know, I don’t live that far from here.” Mingi muttered.

“Oh, but what kind of boyfriend would I be if I just left you to walk by yourself?” The sarcasm in his tone was obvious, but the ravenette wondered if there was any truth behind it. The brunette reached into his pocket, pulling out a box of cigarettes and a lighter.

Mingi stopped in the middle of the pavement.

Yunho stopped too, glancing at him, “What?”

“I said I don’t like smoking.” 

“Right,” Yunho rolled his eyes, but shoved the cigarettes back into his pocket, “Why are you so worried about it anyways? It’s my lungs, not yours.” He sneered. 

The ravenette froze at that, it felt like ice had been poured into his veins. A flash of memories played before his eyes, and he shivered at the thought. 

“Goodbye Yunho.” Was all Mingi said, his tone dull as he started walking away.

The taller student just scoffed, “Are you serious right now? All of this over some cigarettes?”

Mingi didn’t answer, he just kept walking. Yunho didn’t walk away like he thought he would, he just trailed after him at a slower pace, seeming to sense the ravenette didn’t want to talk to him anymore. They took the rest of the walk in silence, and when they arrived at Mingi’s house, he reached out to open the door.

“Hey,” Yunho said, catching his wrist. Mingi glanced up at him in slight surprise, “I won’t smoke around you, okay? I promise I won’t. Is that what you wanted to hear?”

Despite his frustrated expression, there was sincerity in Yunho’s eyes. It wasn’t exactly an apology, but it was as close to one as he was going to get. Mingi let out another sigh, and nodded softly.

“Okay,” He eventually said, and then added as an afterthought, “Goodnight Yunho.”

“Yeah,” The taller brunette muttered, letting his hand fall back to his side, “Goodnight.”

* * *

The next day at school, Mingi found himself walking down the halls between intermission, hunting for the water fountain so he could re-fill his bottle. It took him a couple of minutes, before he finally rounded a corner and let out a triumphant sound as he found a fountain. As he filled up his bottle, a tune came to his mind, it sounded vaguely familiar, like something he hadn’t heard since his childhood. The memory was on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn’t fully recall it, yet he was able to hum along with the tune pretty well. The tune, which started off a soft, barely noticeable melody, began to grow stronger and more confident. That’s when the ravenette realized the song wasn’t coming from inside his head, but rather somewhere in the school.

Mingi paused, looking around the hall curiously to try to pin-point the noise. It was as if the melody was suddenly aware someone was trying to find it, because the tune died down again. The ravenette shrugged, giving up on the search for the music and started making his way back to class, when he heard it again. It was coming from a classroom, somewhere on the far left corner. He followed the tune carefully, his curiosity only growing as he wondered internally where he’s heard it before. 

One of the classroom doors at the end of the hall was open, not very wide, just enough so that sound could escape past the crevice between the door and threshold if it wanted to. The tune was a lot stronger now, and Mingi recognized that it was being played on a piano. _ Wow, this person is really good, _ he thought to himself. He stepped close enough so that he could see through the space in the threshold. Like he speculated, there was a large, dark piano that was positioned directly across the room, right below a large window that viewed the front quad of their school. Mingi’s gaze narrowed in on the tall student who sat at the piano, their back facing him so he couldn’t really recognize them. He could tell it was a male though, due to their uniform, tall stature and broad shoulders. Their slender fingers danced across the keys, the soft melody growing stronger again as they played. They were _ really _good. 

It made Mingi feel something, listening to it. Some kind of emotion he couldn’t really describe, but he guessed music just does that to people. It’s another language of its own, one that transcended barriers and cultures, there was something very _ human _about the ability to admire music. Mingi was pulled out of his inner musings when the song stopped, more abruptly this time, and he looked back at the student at the piano. They stood there, frozen as if they were a statue, their fingers still poised above the black and white keys. It was as if the ravenette was watching this all on a screen, and someone had left the television on pause. He didn’t know why, but he felt himself hold his breath, it was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

Then, there were heavy vibrations that almost made Mingi yelp in startlement. He realized after a moment it was a phone, and the student slowly let his hands fall from the keys as he reached over to grab the phone that was settled on top of the piano. Mingi was too far away to see anything important, but he could tell it was an incoming call. The student stared at the screen of their phone for what felt like an eternity before they decided to answer it, bringing it to their ears.

“Yes?”

Wait. 

He recognized that voice_ . _Mingi blinked in astonishment as the brunette shifted, their posture tensing a little. It was Yunho, he was the one playing the piano! A part of him felt like he should’ve known, his height should’ve given him away, but another part of him was completely shocked by the idea. Who knew someone so usually cold and blunt like Yunho could play such a soft, and gentle tune? It sounded like he’s been playing the piano for years, probably since he was a child. Mingi’s eyes widened in amazement at the thought. It just seemed like the more time he spent being around and observing the tall brunette, the more sides of him he discovered. It felt like putting in a new piece of the puzzle that was Yunho, and hoping it would all shape up to the bigger picture.

Yunho was right about one thing, Mingi really was _ intrigued _by him. He couldn’t help himself, there was something about the brunette’s enigmatic personality that drew him in. Maybe it was because Mingi was usually pretty good at reading people, and Yunho was someone he couldn’t. Maybe it was something deeper than pure curiosity. 

Mingi’s foot slipped, his sneakers squeaked against the floors, and he felt his heart jumpstart as the brunette turned around. Quickly, he pulled away from his hiding place, walking back down the hall he came from. He was sure the taller brunette didn’t see him, so he let out a short sigh of relief. Mingi bit his lip, looking down at the water bottle in his hand as he thought to himself;

_ Who are you really, Jeong Yunho? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks again for reading! as always ignore that last note :))


	6. mustangs and charmanders

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry this chapter took me way longer than I thought it would. But when I did get my inspo back I had a lot of fun writing it, and i'm back with more yungi shenanigans plus yet ANOTHER cameo! (I make a lot of cameos but this one is important for the plot later...hehe). Enjoy!

It was a nice sunny day, and Hongjoong suggested they all sit outside in the quad for lunch instead of in the cafeteria to enjoy the weather. They sat at a green umbrella picnic table, Seonghwa and Yeosang were facing each other in a heated round of Super Smash Bros on their Switches while Hongjoong sat with a journal laid out on the table, writing down his notes for his student council meeting in perfect, neat handwriting. 

“I wish I could write like that,” Mingi said, nodding at the redhead’s notebook, “If I could write like that I’d write notes all day long. Instead, I got stuck with chicken scratch.”

Hongjoong chuckled, his nose scrunching up in amusement and the ravenette found it adorable. Well then again, just about _ everything _ the smaller ginger did was adorable to him. Hongjoong was always appealing without even really trying. 

“I can always teach you,” Hongjoong suggested, “We can work on that after our math homework after school on Friday?”

Mingi nodded excitedly, “That sounds grea-”

“What’s this about Friday plans?” A new voice arose from behind them. 

Both boys turned in their seats to see Yunho walking up to their table, hands shoved into the pockets of their uniforms. His hair, which was usually fawned out across his forehead, was parted differently today; half of it swept out of his face and lightly gelled into a more sophisticated look. As if he was attending a fancy event instead of just going to school. This gave more exposure to his perfectly shaped, dark eyebrows and- Mingi didn’t even think it was possible, but- made his brown eyes just _ that _ much more fierce. The ravenette felt his cheeks starting to burn, so he took a sip of his water bottle to distract himself. It was bad enough he looked gorgeous with his hair in its natural state. . . he had to look _ that _good with his forehead out too?

This was so unfair.

Hongjoong rolled his eyes, but said nothing more. Seonghwa glanced up from their game, but lost interest after he realized it was just Yunho. Mingi found himself scooting over a bit on his part of the bench without even giving it much of a second thought. It was weird how easily he and his group of friends habituated to Yunho being around so often. After being ‘together’ in public for weeks, it oddly felt almost…_ normal. _But Mingi didn’t want to think too hard about that. 

Yunho smoothly slid into the spot Mingi made for him, throwing an arm around his shoulders gently and the ravenette caught a whiff of cologne. It wasn’t his usual scent...it was a heavier, musky scent that smelled expensive. _ Could he be going somewhere important? _Mingi thought to himself with a curious frown.

“Not that anyone asked you,” Hongjoong drawled, and Mingi could practically hear the eye-roll implied with his question. “We’re just going to G-Plex.”

The brunette continued to look smug, “Wouldn’t want to go anyway.”

“Yunho,” Mingi muttered exasperatedly, shooting him a look that told him to stop. The brunette rolled his eyes, but said nothing else.

They enjoyed the rest of their lunch peacefully. Well, somewhat peacefully, Hongjoong and Yunho still liked to make passive-aggressive comments to each other, but Mingi guessed this was as peaceful as it was going to get between those two.

* * *

Wooyoung and Mingi walked out of their music class, and as per usual, the blonde complained about their music teacher.

“He has it out for me Mingi I swear,” Wooyoung continued, “There’s like eleven people in the soprano section, out of _ all _ those people, he managed to hear _ my _ voice and call me out on it? Yet when Jaewon messed up his solo _ twice, _ he says absolutely nothing?” He crossed his arms, “He just can’t stand the fact that I sing better than him _ and _his little teacher’s pet. They hate to see it.”

Mingi just nodded along. At this point, he knew it was just better to nod and agree. “You’re right, they’re probably just jealous.”

“Of course I’m right,” Wooyoung said with a satisfied smile, “The only logical conclusion.”

The ravenette was about to nod again absentmindedly, when he heard a voice called out to him a couple of feet away. Both teens turned to look, and Mingi’s eyes widened in recognition as he saw the tall brunette wave at him amiably.

“Hey Wooseok,” Mingi greeted, waiting for the taller to jog up to them. “What’s up?”

“Just wanted to ask a few questions on our homework,” He shrugged with a boyish smile, “I was kinda zoning out when Mrs. Park was explaining it. You got some free time?”

Mingi frowned, shaking his head, “Sorry I don’t. But, I can text you later?”

The other ravenette nodded, “That’s cool. See you later then,” He paused, noticing Wooyoung standing there too, “Hey, Wooyoung.”

“Hey.” The blonde said, staring at the taller with a strange expression. 

If Wooseok noticed, he didn’t show it on his face. Instead, he just nodded before falling back into the crowd of students walking in the other direction. Mingi and Wooyoung continued walking.

“How do you know Wooseok?” The blonde asked.

Mingi just shrugged, “He’s my partner in Physics. He’s pretty cool, why?” It was actually quite funny, Mingi thinks to himself, on how they met. Other than Yunho, Wooseok was the only other person he was surprised to find taller than him. They kind of bonded right away because of their heights.

Wooyoung shrugged too, “Just curious.”

“Okay,” The ravenette said slowly, noticing the blonde’s odd demeanour. Before he could question him about it, Wooyoung’s eyes brightened as he waved them over.

“Hey Yunho!”

The brunette walked over casually, his hair still swept over his forehead and making Mingi’s face heat up at the thought. 

Wooyoung, on the other hand, just smirked, “Let me guess, he’s back in town?”

“Just for tonight,” Yunho replied, his hands in the pockets of his uniform, “Then he’s flying out to Shanghai tomorrow.” Mingi wasn’t sure if he heard right, but he detected a bit of bitterness in the brunette’s tone.

The blonde nodded, “Guess Sannie and I will come over tomorrow then.”

Yunho nodded in return, and whatever they were talking about had ended. Mingi felt like it was important, and probably had something to do with the way Yunho was dressed now. But like always, he held back his curiosity.

“Song,” Yunho said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“Yeah?”

“What time will you guys be going to G-Plex on Friday?”

Mingi blinked, “Uh, well we were all gonna go after school together. Why?”

The brunette remained impassive, “I thought it over, and I want to go. For Yeosang, that is.”

“Right,” The ravenette mumbled softly. For some reason, he felt a bit disappointed.

“Meet me in the quad after school on Friday,” Yunho continued, oblivious, “We’ll go together.”

_ Together.  _ Just like that, the disappointment had vanished. Mingi nodded, still a little confused, but also a bit excited.

* * *

On Friday after school, Mingi stands under the cool shade of a tree as he waits on the front quad. He already texted Jongho to let him know he wouldn’t be going home with him today. His cousin was wary and incredulous, especially after the ravenette told him the reason why, but eventually, he got him to let him go through with it. Now, all he could do was just stand here, a little bit awkwardly. A fluttery feeling churned in the pits of Mingi’s stomach, and he felt his palms get a little clammy with perspiration. He didn’t know why he was feeling a little apprehensive, the thought passed him briefly when the brunette first told him, but now it was coming back with full force. Was it because this would be the first time he would see Yunho’s house, even if it was just for something as trivial as stopping by so Yunho could get his wallet? Was it because he would finally get a glimpse into the cryptic and enigmatic persona that was Jeong Yunho? Well, whatever the reason was, he hoped the feeling would go away soon. 

“Hey.” A voice called out, followed by long slender fingers snapping in front of his face.

The ravenette jolted in surprise, so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t notice sometime between his musing Yunho had arrived and was trying to get his attention. He looked annoyed at first, but then his eyes brightened with that wicked amusement as he smirked, hands crossed as he leaned into the ravenette’s personal space. 

“Let me guess, were you lost in thought because of me?” He drawled.

Mingi felt his face flush, and he quickly moved away from the taller so he wouldn’t catch his blush. “Y-Yeah right, not everything is about you.” He quickly mumbled.

Yunho straightened back to his full height, raising one eyebrow at him. "Hmm. . . cute."

“What?” Mingi asked, not making eye-contact.

The brunette’s smirk widened, “You always stutter when you’re lying.”

Mingi rolled his eyes, but internally he felt like screaming. Did he always stutter? Was it _that _obvious? He never even realized it.

“Let’s just go.” The ravenette muttered, consciously making sure he didn’t stutter as he turned to walk away. He was heading towards the crosswalk, when he suddenly felt a soft hand grab his shoulder gently, effectively stopping him. It reminded him of the cafe, and the blush threatened to rise again.

“We’re not going that way.” Yunho explained, leading them towards a parking lot that was adjacent to the front quad.

“Why are we going here?” Mingi wondered, eyebrows drawing together in confusion.

The brunette shot him a look, as if he should already know the answer. “My car.”

“You have a _ car _?”

“Yeah, most people do.”

Mingi was taken aback, “I just...I’ve never seen you drive one.”

Yunho shrugged, “It was in the shop before. The oil needed to be changed, plus I wanted to install a few modifications.”

The ravenette snorted, “_ Modifications? _ What are you, a street racer?”

Amusement glistened in his brown eyes, “I just like cars.”

Mingi nodded as the two walked into the parking lot, Yunho reached into his pocket to grab his keys, and when he heard the sound of the car’s locator going off, his eyes widened in astonishment. 

Mingi didn’t know much about cars, but he could tell right away that this one was a vintage masterpiece. The Mustang was aged in a charming way, it’s ebony paint job gleaming remarkably in the rays of the sun. The silver accents were shiny as if brand new, and gave more emphasis to the shape of the vehicle. It was hard to guess when the Mustang was created but it definitely looked like the prime of its era, the appeal of it all never faded once as it’s sleek design remained an utter classic. It looked _too _good to be true, it felt like this kind of car should be held on display in a museum or at a Mustang-enthusiast event instead of in the hands of a highschooler. 

Mingi turned to shoot a wary look, “Okay, I’m starting to think you actually _ are _a street racer.”

Yunho snorted, walking over to the driver’s side and unlocking the door, “Just get in.”

The ravenette hesitantly followed him, still not completely believing what was in front of him. The interior was just as nice as the exterior, all black and smooth leather. It smelled subtly of Yunho’s cologne and cigarettes, thankfully not enough to irritate his lungs. Mingi felt relief when AC began to blast from the vents built into the dashboard, the engine coming to life with a roar so strong that he could feel the vibrations coming from his seat. Even though it was a sports car and lacked backseats, the car didn’t feel tight or confined (which was kind of surprising considering both of their heights). Maybe that was one of the ‘modifications’ Yunho made to the car. 

“This is amazing,” The ravenette breathed, staring wide-eyed at everything around him. He looked at the brunette, “Where did you even get this car?”

Yunho shrugged, “It was my seventeenth birthday present.”

He revved the engine again, and they pulled out of the parking lot, and down the busy streets of Seoul.

* * *

Yunho turned into a neighborhood with high-rise, expensive-looking buildings, and the ravenette fell into an awe-struck silence as they slowly drove past the buildings. He hasn’t really had the chance to explore the big city that was Seoul, so he wasn’t familiar with most areas at all, but he knew right away that this district was much different from the others. They turned into a new neighborhood, the buildings were lower and looked more like houses, but overall still large and extravagant. Mingi’s train of thought crashed when he saw the long, round-a-bout driveway to get to the large house sitting at the top of it. It was basically a mansion! Mingi quickly came to the conclusion that Yunho was being truthful when he said he got that car for his seventeenth birthday earlier, and he also came to the conclusion that Jeong Yunho was _loaded. _Of all the rumors to circulate at their school, he had never heard anything about the brunette being filthy rich. 

His eyes widened as he processed this new revelation, and didn’t even realize the car had come to a stop until slender fingers were snapped in front of him again. He flinched, before snapping his gaze to Yunho, who still looked smugly amused.

“I know I’m an irresistible guy, but you gotta pay more attention to your surroundings, Song.”

The ravenette rolled his eyes, fumbling for the seatbelt and struggling to unclasp the buckle from its holder. After a solid thirty seconds of watching him struggle, Yunho leaned over with an exaggerated sigh, causing the ravenette to still completely. Mingi watched as Yunho gently unclasped the buckle, before bringing it back up to where it belonged. 

“Thank you.” Mingi murmured, pointedly not making eye-contact again. Yunho was still so _close. _

“. . . Let’s just make this quick.” Was the brunette’s sort of delayed response.

The two teenagers climbed out of the onyx sport’s car, walking up the short set of stairs to get to the double doors. Yunho typed in a password to the keypad on the side, and they stepped inside. The first room they entered was a large lobby, with a grand staircase in front of them, spiraling down from two different directions, and at the base between them was a large carpet that looked like it cost more than Mingi’s house. It didn’t take him long to notice the extravagant chandelier hanging above the carpet on the ceiling. With the sunlight coming in from the long, wide windows the tiny pieces of glass glimmered and radiated such a level of luxury that it made Mingi hesitate on entering any deeper into the manor.

“This is _ insane,” _Mingi breathed out again, looking around in utter bewilderment, “I can’t believe you live in a place like this!”

“What did you think I lived in?” Yunho wondered, eyeing him with genuine curiosity.

“I-” The ravenette flushed again, “I don’t know. I was just not expecting...all of _ this _.”

The brunette actually smiled at that, but as his gaze turned back to the manor, his smile disappeared, “Yeah, well not everything is perfect and easy just because I live in a big house.”

Mingi frowned in confusion, but before he could ask the taller what he meant by that, Yunho was already walking up the staircase. 

“Stay here,” He told the ravenette, “I’ll be right back.”

Mingi nodded, before walking over to sit down in a chair that was next to a closet. He looked around the lobby again, taking into account the large, lavish-looking paintings that embellished the walls. He noticed that there weren’t any family portraits hung up. The brunette came back downstairs before he could really contemplate that, wallet in his hand and phone in the other as he checked the time. Mingi stood up from the (really soft and comfortable) chair, and they headed out back towards his car.

* * *

They arrived at G-Plex, meeting up with Hongjoong, Seonghwa, and Yeosang in the same place Mingi met up with them last time. He waved to the three as he and Yunho approached, noticing the way Yeosang’s eyes widened slightly. Hongjoong frowned up at the taller brunette, but didn’t say anything more. 

“We already got our coins,” The redhead said instead, “I have enough to cover you Mingi, but…”

“I’ll go buy more.” Yunho replied without missing a beat, living Mingi’s side to go to the front. 

“I can’t believe you actually convinced him to come here.” Seonghwa said, looking surprised.

The ravenette just shrugged, feeling a bit more confident, “He’s not as antisocial as he wants you to think.” It was a better excuse than saying he agreed to come because of Yeosang.

“What game should we play first?” Yeosang asked. The three teens looked around for a moment, before agreeing on a racing game. 

“You guys go ahead,” Mingi said, “I’ll wait for Yunho to come back.”

His friends nodded, before heading off in that direction. The ravenette stood, a bit awkwardly at the center of G-Plex for a moment, his gaze wandering around, when he noticed the prize rack on the far side of the building. Or really, the huge orange plushie that caught his attention. Mingi looked at the giant stuffed Charmander hanging at the top of the prize rack, and his eyes widened in immediate excitement. He wanted it, he didn’t know how he was going to get the 200,000 tickets to afford it, but he knew he _wanted _it. He turned to Yunho, nudging him in the arm to get his attention.

“Wanna make a bet?” The ravenette asked, his own mischievous smile forming on his lips.

Yunho raised an eyebrow, “What’s the bet?”

“We play every game in here and see who gets the most tickets. Whoever wins the most has to use theirs plus the other person’s to buy the winner a prize of their choosing.”

The brunette looked dubious, “There is no way we can literally play all the games in here, Song. You know how big this building is?”

“Fine,” Mingi said with a resigned sigh, he gestured to half of the room on his right, “Then all the games on this side?”

The brunette followed his gesture before nodding in agreement, “Get ready to buy my prize, Song.” Mingi got excited again, immediately turning to the videogames, but the taller stopped him with that gentle shoulder touch he always did, “Nuh-uh, I pick the first game.”

The ravenette protested, “That wasn’t a part of our bet!”

“What?” Yunho grinned, “Are you afraid you’re gonna lose?”

Mingi opened his mouth to protest again, but stopped and chose to pout instead. 

Yunho snorted at his reaction, “Cute.”

That was the second time he called him that, and Mingi flushed at the thought. They walked over to the basketball game, and the ravenette glanced up at the net warily. Despite his height, he was never really good at basketball...or really any sport that involved shooting or hitting to score. 

They put in the coins, and Yunho pressed the start button. Mingi felt himself startle at the hiss of the machine as the basketballs were released, and began rolling down the court to him. He picked up the first one with uncertainty, before sneaking a glance at the taller brunette to his right. Yunho was making baskets as if it came as easily to him as breathing, his gaze focused solely on the hoop as he continuously made shot after shot with no breaks. The ravenette felt himself staring with wide-eyes, watching at the taller effortlessly made shots. He was beginning to catch the attention of other people around them, quiet whispers floating around them with awe-struck expressions.

In the end, Yunho had won. 

Mingi only made two baskets. 

“Dude, did you even try at all?” Seonghwa teased, at one point he had walked up to them during their match. 

Mingi felt his face grow hot, “S-Shut up.”

Yunho grinned with a taunting expression, “C’mon Song, isn’t this supposed to be a competition?”

The ravenette shot him a look of annoyance, “You picked that game on purpose! How am I supposed to compete against a secret basketball superstar?”

The brunette rolled his eyes in amusement, “I’ve never even played basketball before.”

“You’re lying.” He deadpanned.

“I’m not.”

Mingi rolled his eyes too, “Whatever, let’s just play a different game. _ I _pick the next.”

Yunho chuckled but followed after the ravenette as they went to one of the car-racing games. Despite Mingi being actually pretty good at car-racing, he still ended up losing to Yunho. In fact, he lost to Yunho in every game except for games where you could win tickets randomly, laser tag, and Dance Dance Revolution. Two hours later, Mingi begrudgingly walked up to the ticket counting machine, knowing that his dreams of taking home that giant Charmander was quickly fading. 

“I can’t believe I lost like this,” Mingi groaned, “This bet was a terrible mistake!”

“Yes, it was.” Yunho nodded.

“Why are you so good at everything anyway?”

The brunette simply shrugged, “I’ve been going here since I was like ten.”

The ravenette squinted, “And you didn’t think that would’ve been good information to mention before?”

Yunho raised an eyebrow, “I wasn’t the one who came up with bet, now was I?”

Mingi crossed his arms, but didn’t protest any further. They walked up to the prize stand, where a skinny guy stood at the counter, staring down at his phone and looking like he would rather be anywhere else than here. He looked up at them when they approached, nodding in silent greeting before Mingi slid over their ticket numbers. 

“Nice,” The guy commented, “You can pretty much pick anything here.”

Mingi eyed the orange plushie again, before sighing and turned to the taller brunette, “What do you want?”

“Hmm,” Yunho said, pretending to contemplate as his eyes scanned the top rack, “I think I’ll take that Charmander.”

The ravenette ignored the disappointment that surged inside him as the guy stood on a stool and got the plushie down. He handed it to Yunho, who thanked him quietly, and they began walking back to where Hongjoong, Yeosang, and Seonghwa were playing air-hockey. He was about to ask Yunho if he wanted to play, but the words left his lips when he felt something large and soft being shoved into his hands. He looked down to see the Charmander smiling up at him with wide blue eyes. 

Mingi’s eyes widened in surprise, “Wait, wha-”

“C’mon Song, it was so obvious you wanted that. You’ve been looking at it this entire time.” The brunette muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets. 

Mingi stopped walking, looking up at the taller, trying to decipher the expression on his face. “So, you got Charmander...for me?”

For once, it was Yunho who refused to make eye contact. Mingi was beginning to realize, despite how cold and impassive Yunho seemed to act, he was actually very observant. That strange fluttery feeling returned, and Mingi held the plushie closer to his chest, a smile he couldn’t quite control coming to his face. 

The brunette snorted from beside him, “It’s just a plushie, what are you so smiley for?”

_ Because you gave it to me. _Mingi pushed the thought away and instead responded with, “I loved Pokemon since I was a kid, he was my favorite one.” A memory suddenly came to his mind; he was sitting with his mother as she gave him his birthday gift; a Charmander toy.

“Anyway thanks,” The ravenette continued walking, “I really appreciate it.”

“. . .you’re welcome.” The brunette murmured, a bit hesitant. As if he was uncomfortable or unsure with the idea of being thanked. 

Mingi suddenly frowned, “Wait!” He glanced back at the taller with wide eyes, who stopped walking again at his exclamation.

“What?” Yunho asked, a little bewildered.

A sharp surge of guilt raced across his chest, drowning all the previous warm feelings inside of him. He looked down at the ground, “We didn’t. . . you didn’t get an opportunity to be with Yeosang. I got distracted with the bet, I’m sorry.”

Yunho looked over at the brunette, still playing air-hockey. His expression was unreadable, and the ravenette mentally prepared himself for the worst. He wasn’t sure if the brunette would get angry or not, he truly didn’t mean to distract them from their goal. 

What he wasn’t expecting, was for Yunho to just sigh softly, “Don’t worry about it, Song.”

_ “What?” _Mingi asked, stunned.

The brunette began to walk again, “I said don’t worry about it. . . there will be other times anyway.”

Mingi was amazed. Just when he thought he was starting to figure out who Yunho was, he kept getting exposed to more sides of him. He was so different from what the rumors portrayed him as, and Mingi felt grateful that he never let them scare him off. Yes, the brunette was still an enigma to him, but Mingi didn’t mind solving the mystery. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading! I always appreciate feedback. (and if the 2nd note does appear plz ignore her!)


	7. the dinner date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello :D back again here with another chapter! This one was once again a bit hard to write but I loved writing the dishwashing part! Anyway, here to bring you some more yungi shenanigans and also a little bit more info on yunho's character (at least I hope it's going that way, I'm trying to bring his parts of his past in. more will definitely be included in the next chapter). and also some more cues as to how his feelings are changing! (of course mingi will remain oblivious lol).  
Enjoy!

_ In...and out. _

_ In…and out. _

“Alright, you’re good to go, sweetie.” The nice nurse (Mingi discovered her name was Sunhi) said to him as he was pulled out of the machine, the brightness of the white hospital walls replacing the darkness inside the CT. The ravenette smiled at Sunhi, thanking her softly as she helped him get back to his fight, and led him outside of the room. He quickly changed in the small room adjacent, and met Aunt Mina and Jongho back in the check-up room where they waited patiently in the chairs. 

Mina stood when she noticed his arrival, “How are you feeling?” She asked carefully.

“Fine.” Mingi replied, before adding as an afterthought, “A little better.” It wasn’t much, but he noticed his lungs haven’t gotten very irritated over these past few weeks. Maybe it was progress, or maybe it was just luck. Either way, Mingi was grateful for it. 

Mina’s smile was radiant, “I’m glad to hear that.”

Shortly after, Dr. Jung returned with a breakdown of his test results. His lips were upturned in a handsome grin as he praised the ravenette for his progress. After he finished, the trio was directed to the pharmacy section of the hospital, where Mingi got his aclidinium fill. Aunt Mina declared it was, once again, another call for celebratory dinner and both boys brightened at the thought. 

“You should bring Yunho over tonight.” The older woman announced, seemingly out of nowhere, as they entered the grocery store.

_ “What?” _Mingi blurted out, freezing in place.

Mina just chuckled, “Why not? We’ll definitely make enough food for four, plus I haven’t seen him in a while,” She explained with an exaggerated frown, “You never bring him around Mingi, why is that? I really want to see him.”

Mingi blinked in bewilderment, “I, uh…”

“He’s probably really busy,” Jongho stepped in, “Plus you can’t just ask someone last minute like that, Mom.”

“Nonsense, it’s only two,” The brunette waved a hand dismissively, before scanning the seasonings on the shelf, “Plus I want to get to know him better.”

Jongho snorted, “You act like _you’re_ the one dating him.”

Mina scoffed, “I’ve only seen him once, and I know next to nothing about him. Is it so wrong to want to learn more?”

“It’s only been a month Aunt Mina,” Mingi finally found his voice, joining his cousin in convincing her against it, “I don’t want to move things too fast.”

The older woman shot the two teenagers a look, crossing her arms, “He didn’t seem to have a problem with me when he came over and introduced himself. _ And _he was the one who told me you two were even dating, seeing as you conveniently forgot to mention that.”

Just like that, Mingi lost his voice again, and all he could do was throw his cousin a helpless look. _ ‘What are we supposed to do now?’ _The ravenette mouthed.

Jongho just shook his head with a shrug, _ ‘I dunno dude.’ _

“Instead of trying to have a conversation I can’t hear, why don’t you two make yourselves useful and go get me some more vegetables?” Mina announced in an almost sing-song tone, handing a small list to Jongho, who took it reluctantly. Both boys left to go to the produce section of the busy grocery store, and once they were out of earshot, Mingi turned to the brunette.

“Maybe you should tell her the truth, Mingi.” Jongho suggested.

The ravenette shook his head quickly, “ I can’t. The less people that know the truth the better, plus I’m pretty sure Mina would threaten Yunho _bodily harm_ if she ever found out he was just using me.”

The shorter brunette frowned slightly at the taller boy’s choice of words. He sighed softly, “She’ll find out eventually. You know how she is.”

Unfortunately, Mingi knew _exactly _how relentless Aunt Mina could be when she wanted something.

“Well, I guess that means I’ll have to hide it for as long as possible then,” He mumbled, feeling a sharp sense of solemness swell in his chest at his own words. He pushed his thoughts and feelings about that to the back of his mind, though. He had bigger things to worry about at the moment, “We need to come up with a good excuse.”

Jongho nodded in agreement, “You know how my mom is. She won’t let it go unless he tells her himself.”

Mingi contemplated silently for a moment, his gaze roaming around the grocery store until a man talking loudly into the speaker of his phone caught his attention. His face brightened in realization, and he excitedly turned back to Jongho.

“I got an idea,” The ravenette said as he pulled out his phone, “I’m gonna call him in front of Mina to ask. And I’ll let him know ahead of time to say no.”

The brunette nodded after a moment, “Yeah, that should work.”

** _Mingi:_ **

** _I’m gonna call you in like 10 mins and ask u if u want to have dinner with us._ **

** _Don’t worry u don’t actually have to go lol. _ **

** _Just say no so my aunt will stop asking._ **

He quickly typed out the messages before he could lose his nerve, and shut the screen of his phone again. He could feel the scrutinizing stare of his cousin before he even looked at him. The same concerned expression Jongho wore whenever Yunho was mentioned was on his face again, and before he could say something, Mingi wrapped an arm around his shoulder in a friendly, comfortable way.

“This plan will work.” Mingi reassured him.

When the two teenagers returned to Mina, she was in the middle of looking at rice bags. Jongho dumped the vegetables into the cart as Mingi nervously pressed the call button on Yunho’s contact. The line rang for a couple of moments, before there was a soft crackle sound as a familiar voice echoed;

_ “Hello?” _

Mingi felt his heart jump in his chest at the sound of his voice. He didn’t know why, but it made him feel both nervous and excited. They’ve never talked on the phone before.

“Hey Yunho,” He replied slowly, consciously making an effort to not stutter. Not just because he was wary of Yunho calling him out on it, but Mina would naturally be able to sense something was amiss. “My Aunt Mina was wondering if you wanna come over for dinner tonight. She likes to cook a lot of food even though there’s only three of us.”

Jongho snorted, while the older woman eyed Mingi carefully. Her expression was indiscernible. 

_ “Ooh, is that Mingi?” _Another voice suddenly appeared in the background. From the cheekiness in the tone, the ravenette could tell it was Wooyoung.

_ “Go away.” _Was Yunho’s dry response, some sounds of a muffled protest followed. Aunt Mina raised an eyebrow.

Mingi shifted his weight from his right leg to his left apprehensively, “You sound like you’re busy! Well, that’s fine, maybe next tim-”

_ “What time is it?” _

The ravenette froze as he processed the sentence. There was a very long, almost awkward silence that followed as Mingi internally panicked.

_ “. . .hello?” _

“Uh, yeah sorry,” The ravenette mumbled, pointedly ignoring the face-palm Jongho did behind Mina, “I guess. . . around six or seven.”

_ “Alright.” _

_ No, definitely not alright! _Mingi thought to himself. “Heh, okay.”

_“I’ll see you later then.” _

_ “Wait! If it is Mingi, tell him I said h-.” _The phone call ended. Mingi prepared himself for her reaction, slowly looking up to see her smiling in satisfaction.

“See! I told you.” Was all she said, before going back to shopping.

Both Mingi and Jongho exchanged a look, before the ravenette let out a resigned sigh. The plan definitely _did not_ work. 

* * *

Mingi sat anxiously on the top of his bed, staring up at the ceiling as multiple scenarios of this dinner becoming a disaster ran through his head. He couldn’t understand, just _why _would Yunho agree to this? He only really needed him around when Yeosang was present, wouldn’t this just be an unnecessary burden to him? Was it because he was bored, or he never liked to miss an opportunity to tease him? 

_ “Ugh,” _ The ravenette groaned, gracelessly free-falling back onto his bed, “This is gonna be the death of me!” He had left Yunho _plenty _of messages telling him that he was supposed to say no, and then offering him the solution of calling in 20 minutes before dinner started to say he couldn’t make it.

Yunho hadn’t responded to any of those messages.

Mingi sighed loudly again, feeling his heartbeat pick up speed every time he checked his phone and realized it was getting closer to six. _ Maybe he was just doing it to tease me, _ the ravenette rationalized, _ there’s no way he’d willingly sit through a family dinner with someone he’s not even really dating. _To put all that effort into a fabricated relationship seemed. . .very un-Yunho like. But then again, was he really qualified to make assumptions about what Yunho would or wouldn’t do when he’s only known him for a month?

Mingi didn’t know what to do or think, the panic building up inside his chest until it felt like he was about to explode. He wanted to talk to someone for help, but Jongho was stuck on kitchen duty downstairs with Aunt Mina. He couldn’t go to Hongjoong, Seonghwa, or Yeosang because none of them knew the truth. In fact, there was only one other person the ravenette could think of. He scrolled through his contacts, and pressed the call button hastily, praying that he would pick up his call.

_ “Hello?” _A familiar whimsical voice answered on the last ring.

“Wooyoung,” Mingi started, “Please tell me that you’re still over Yunho’s house.”

_ “Yep,” _ The blonde replied, popping the ‘p’ at the end. Mingi felt relieved at that, but the relief instantly melted away at his next statement, _ “But Sannie and I are about to leave, though. He’s getting ready upstairs right now and I know he’ll kick us out once he goes.” _

“So, he’s really coming? There’s no way to change his mind?” Mingi asked quietly.

_ “I really doubt anyone can change Yunho’s mind once he's set on something,” _ There was a small amount of static as the blonde presumably moved around a little, _ “But why do you sound so bummed out about that? Don’t you have a crush on him or whatever?” _

The ravenette flushed, “No, I don’t! This is all a favor, remember?”

_ “So you keep saying.” _

Mingi sighed again, switching the subject, “I just don’t understand him, Wooyoung. Why would he agree to go through all this extra trouble when we’re not really dating? It doesn’t make sense. I mean, I’m only just a means to an end, right?”

The blonde was silent for a moment, _ “Is that what you really think?” _

The ravenette shrugged, even though Wooyoung couldn’t see it. “Well, yeah. How else am I supposed to view the situation?”

_ “You can start by not lowering your self-esteem and giving yourself more credit,” _ Wooyoung said in an oddly firm tone, _ “You’re not just ‘a means to an end’ Mingi, you mean more than that to him.” _

The ravenette raised an eyebrow, “But, all he ever does is tease me?”

Wooyoung snorted, _ “Think about it, Mingi. Other than San, Yeosang, and I, Yunho refuses to be around people. Yet he’s spent more time with you than any of us this entire month. I doubt he would do that if he really thought you meant nothing to him.” _

“. . .what are you trying to say?” Mingi asked softly. He didn’t know why, but he could feel himself holding his breath in anticipation.

Wooyoung was silent for another moment, before finally sighing, _ “I can’t really tell you how he feels, but I’ve been around him long enough to know something is there. Maybe it’s not romantic, but he definitely feels something for you- Oh! Hey Yunho!” _ His voice became a bit louder and higher pitched. Mingi’s heart stuttered at the thought of him being there and hearing everything, _ “Oh, you’re about to go? Well, have fun. See you tomorrow in. . .oh, me? Yeah, I’m actually talking to Mingi right now. Why? Because he called me, duh.” _ There were vague sounds of muffled protests again, before Wooyoung’s voice finally came back, _ “He’s so annoying! Anyway, he said he’ll be over in twenty, I gotta go. Have fun~” _He said in a teasing tone, before hanging up.

All Mingi could do was stare at his phone in confusion.

He didn’t realize how long he was staring at his phone, until he heard Mina call for him from downstairs. Rolling out of bed belatedly, he walked downstairs to see his aunt and cousin finish putting out all the food on their grand wooden table. Mingi’s stomach grumbled lowly at the sight and delicious smell, and almost forgot why he was so nervous about this dinner in the first place. But of course, the rapt set of knocks on the door was there to (unhelpfully) remind him. Jongho and him locked worried gazes for a moment, before the ravenette mumbled out a quick_ ‘I’ll get it.’ _

He opened the door, unsurprised to see the tall brunette on the other side. What he _was _surprised by, was the long dark-colored and expensive-looking wine bottle in his hands. 

Mingi gaped at him, “Dude, what the heck? You were supposed to say _ no, _not come with alcohol!”

Yunho’s eyes glinted with that familiar amusement, “Relax Song, it’s just a dinner.”

The ravenette eyed him warily. Yunho was being entirely too un-Yunho right now, something seemed off. But before he could voice his suspicions, the brunette walked past him and into the living room, rounding the corner as if he’s done it a hundred times and walked into the kitchen with a big smile on his face. He heard Aunt Mina’s excited exclamation at the appearance of him, and the brunette laughed in a soft way he’s never heard before. Still mostly nervous but now filled with a bit of curiosity, the ravenette followed after the taller boy into the kitchen to see Mina beaming brightly as she talked to him. 

When she caught sight of her nephew, she excitedly showed him the wine bottle, “Mingi, look! He brought me _ Pinot Noir! _This looks so expensive! How did you know this was one of my favorites?”

Yunho shrugged, smiling softly, “I guess it was a lucky guess.” He smiled in an almost sheepish way that reminded Mingi of the innocent, cute puppy again. Maybe, if he hadn’t already known him, if they hadn’t met the way that they did, he could see him like that. A sweet, shy boy that could melt the heart of millions with a smile alone.

“Mingi?. . .Dude, _ Mingi?" _The ravenette found himself snapping out of his trance, blinking as Jongho stood right in front of him, staring at him with quite a bit of concern. “Are you okay?” He asked quickly.

The ravenette nodded, “I’m fine, what’s up?”

The concern didn’t leave his brown eyes, and suddenly the ravenette realized he was probably thinking something more serious. “Dinner’s ready so we’re sitting down, you were just standing there, you weren’t responding to us earlier I just. . .”

Mingi nodded, “I’m fine.” He repeated again, a bit more firmly. Relief finally sank into his eyes as Jongho calmed down, and he didn’t miss the way Mina had moved closer, as if he was going to keel over at that moment. He knew Yunho noticed too, the odd tension hanging in the air for a moment, and he sent the ravenette a questioning look, but he ignored it. The last thing he wanted Yunho to find out about was his medical condition. As if his life wasn’t complicated enough right now.

“God, I’m starving. Let’s eat!” 

He was relieved that neither of them said anything more about it, and Mina agreed happily while still holding onto the wine. They all sat down at the table, passing around plates and bowls of various side dishes that were placed around the main one. The atmosphere became lighter over the dinner, the wine Yunho brought over might’ve been the biggest contributor. Mina always became more animated when tipsy. 

“So Yunho,” The older woman started, swirling what was left of the _ Pinot Noir _in her glass, “Is your last name Jeong?”

Both Mingi and Jongho raised an eyebrow at the question, but the brunette just nodded politely. “It is.”

Mina’s dark eyes widened, a bit dramatically as she gasped, “I was right! I _ knew _I remembered your name from somewhere, it sounded so familiar! Your father is Jeong Beomseok, isn’t he? The CFO of Korea’s biggest banking firm?”

Yunho picked at the rice with his chopsticks, a distant look in his eyes. “Yeah, he is.”

Suddenly, the mansion and his fancy, vintage mustang all made sense to Mingi. He tucked that piece of information in the back of his mind for later. But Jongho seemed to gape at him in shock/awe, and even Mina looked a little awestruck. The ravenette wondered, was it common news that Yunho’s family was very wealthy? Or was that something he kept to himself?

“What about your mother?” Mina wondered, taking a slow sip, “Does she help with the family business?”

It was an innocent, rather casual question. But from the way Yunho stiffened beside him, the ravenette knew it crossed a line. He remembered noticing there weren’t any family portraits around the foyer where he waited for him last week. He didn’t think much of it then, but he was starting to sense it had something to do with his mother. Plus, whenever Wooyoung and or San mentioned his family, they always talked about his father. 

“Auntie,” Mingi said, mentally praying she would leave it at that. 

Despite him looking uncomfortable by whatever memories that played across his mind at the mention of his mother, all Yunho did was shake his head gently. “No, she was never interested in the family business. She stayed out of it mostly.”

For once, Mina seemed to understand Mingi’s pleading look, because despite how curious she became at the brunette’s explanation, she just nodded and smiled. She decided to switch to another topic instead, 

“You know, you’re the first boyfriend Mingi’s ever had, right? Well, I should say you’re the first person Mingi’s ever _dated._”

The ravenette almost choked on a piece of meat. Jongho snorted from beside him, but when Mingi glared at him, he pretended to cough.

“Oh really?” Yunho replied, that familiar sly amusement brightening his eyes. 

“N-No, that’s not true!” Mingi immediately protested. 

The older woman scoffed, “C’mon Mingi, I know how you are. Remember Jisoo from first grade?” She turned to Yunho, “He used to have a crush on her because she was the prettiest and nicest girl in the class. One time for White Day, she gave him a cupcake and he blushed so bad his face was red for the rest of the day. It was so adorable! You know, Mingi has always been a bit shy but hopelessly romantic, so I was a bit surprised when I found out he met someone so quickly, since he’s only been back here a couple of months.”

Mingi was afraid Mina sounded suspicious, but Yunho took her slightly questioning tone in stride with a casual shrug, “Well, everything happens for a reason. Sometimes it doesn’t matter how long you’ve known that person, when they’re the one, you just know it. Something inside you just tells you.”

Mingi paused at that, not expecting the brunette to say something so _ insightful _ like that. It seemed Mina was just as surprised, because she looked at him for a long moment, before her smile widened as she took another sip of her drink. The rest of the dinner went by with relative ease, although the more Mina drank, the more she wanted to tell more embarrassing stories about her son and nephew. After it was over, Yunho volunteered to help with the dishes, and Mingi had no choice but to help out too (Mina would chew him out if he left his _ ‘guest’ _to do all the work). That is how he ended up standing side-by-side with the taller brunette, scrubbing off a dish before handing it to him to dry. Unfortunately for him, both of them had long fingers due to their height, and they kept accidentally brushing each other every time he handed him a dish. 

After the fourth time, Mingi stopped mumbling ‘sorry’. On the sixth time it happened, the ravenette wondered if Yunho was doing it on purpose. He’d always catch him smiling to himself as if someone told him a joke, and when it happened a seventh time, the ravenette finally turned to face him fully.

“Are you doing that on purpose?!” He whisper-yelled.

The brunette just shrugged, still pretending to be focused on drying the dish. “And what if I am?” There wasn’t a smirk on his face, but his voice practically sounded like there was one.

Mingi flushed again, taken aback by his response. “W-well, why?!”

“I told you before, I like seeing you get flustered.”

The ravenette rolled his eyes, turning back to the dishes, and grabbing another one out of the soapy water.

“So, you’ve never dated anyone before me, huh?” The brunette asked not even a minute later.

Mingi felt his cheeks get hot again, “I _ have _!”

“Really, who?” His tone was incredulous, but the ravenette could feel his stare without even looking at him.

Mingi bit his lip, mentally debating the embarrassing tale, before sighing, “It was my freshman year, back when I lived in America. I. . .liked this guy who was my friend. He liked me too. . . We dated for like a week though, because I found out he was moving.”

The brunette snorted loudly.

“It’s _ not _funny!”

“You’re right, it’s not funny. It’s hilarious.”

Mingi looked down at his hands, “I never told anyone ‘cuz it was so short, and we didn’t even really do anything.”

Yunho was silent for a moment, before he mumbled out, “Fair enough.” They went back to washing the dishes quietly for about another minute, before Mingi decided to voice a question he too wanted to know.

“Did you meant what you said, earlier when you were telling Mina about how we met?”

“Huh?”

The ravenette turned fully to face him again. He felt a little sheepish, “You know, all that stuff about just knowing who the one is?”

The brunette’s face dawned in realization. He nodded slowly.

Mingi’s eyes widened, _ “Really?” _

“What, you think just because I’m a delinquent I can’t believe in true love?” Yunho asked with a raised eyebrow.

Mingi rolled his eyes playfully on the outside. But on the inside, his brain was stuck on that last sentence. Yunho said _ love. _Did that mean he really was in love with Yeosang? Even if it was true, he would've seen it coming . . . but that didn’t stop his chest from squeezing at the thought.

* * *

When physics was over, Mingi gathered up his things while Wooseok stretched his arms above his head in the seat beside him. Because he had fallen asleep sometime during the lesson, his dark, wavy strands stuck up in random directions in the front, and Mingi chuckled in amusement as the taller ravenette rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

“Wow, I did not understand anything he was talking about,” Wooseok said, finally standing up and gathering up his stuff.

Mingi snorted, “Not surprised, seeing as you passed out as soon as Mr. Park started speaking.”

The taller just shrugged simply, blowing his long bangs out of his face. Mingi thought it was endearing. 

“You explain things ten times better than Mr. Park does anyway.” Wooseok said, wrapping an arm around his shoulder casually. “What do you say? Should we study together after school?”

They walked out of the classroom and into the hallway swarming with students. Mingi was about to answer Wooseok’s question, but the words died on his tongue when he looked ahead and noticed Yunho standing against the lockers on the other side of the hallway. He was looking _directly _at him, and the ravenette’s heart jumped in his chest, especially when he gently pushed himself off the locker and began making his way towards them. 

“Mingi?” Wooseok asked lightly, noticing the boy beside him wasn’t responding. “Hey, you good-?”

As Yunho approached, his gaze switched from Mingi to Wooseok, and then settled on his arm in between them. A dark look crossed his eyes, and his eyebrows furrowed slightly. “Song,” He finally spoke, his voice as emotionless as his face, “I need to talk to you.”

“Okay.” The ravenette responded slowly, looking at the brunette curiously. _ Why was he acting like that? Was he mad? Did he text me again and I forgot to see it? _Wooseok raised an eyebrow, and Mingi had to calm down his reeling mind. He could tell the taller was looking for some explanation.

Mingi just put on a calm grin, “Oh by the way, this is my boyfriend Yunho. Yunho, this is Wooseok, my deskmate in Physics.”

The taller brunette didn’t even seem to acknowledge anything Mingi just said, he was still staring Wooseok down. But unlike anyone else who had been under attack by that fierce gaze, Wooseok stared back at him just as fiercely. It wasn’t every day that he could meet someone who wasn’t intimidated by Yunho. Someone who didn’t fear getting burned by the blaze in his dark eyes. Someone who didn’t shrink under his towering, imposing physique. In fact, they were almost similar height-wise. Mingi squinted up at them . . . _ maybe Wooseok was a little taller._

Mingi frowned. There was definitely some _odd _tension in the atmosphere between the three. He just couldn’t put his finger on exactly why.

The tension was finally broken when Wooseok’s lips quirked up again, and he held out a hand in politeness, “Nice to meet you, Yunho.”

“Likewise.” Yunho muttered, but never made a move to shake his hand. Instead, he just kept looking at him, until finally, Wooseok got the message and smoothly brought his hand back to fall at his side.

He turned his smile back on Mingi as he waved, “I’ll see you around then.”

The ravenette waved back, and the taller disappeared down the hall. When he turned back to face the brunette, his expression was clouded with concern, “Are you okay?”

Yunho seemed to finally snap out of whatever broody trance he had, because he crossed his arms, rolling his eyes as if annoyed. “What do you mean by that? I’m perfectly fine.”

Mingi shrugged, “I don’t know, you looked like something was bothering you earlier when Wooseok was here.”

Yunho scoffed lightly, “What’s _bothering _me is that we’re still standing here in this school. Let’s go.” Immediately, the brunette turned on his heel and started walking to the nearest exit. 

The ravenette jogged to catch up with him, “Wait! Where are we going?”

“Back to the cafe, we’re meeting up again for our project.” Yunho replied, seeming unconcerned by the fact that the shorter was practically panting next to him. _ Why was he so fast anyway? Weren’t tall people supposed to walk slower? _

When the two teenagers finally arrived in the parking lot, Mingi stopped to take a deep breath of relief.

“Oh by the way,” He said, still a bit breathless, he stood back to his full height, watching as Yunho finally turned around to acknowledge him, “I wanted to apologize for the other day. I know my Aunt can be kind of. . . well, how should I say it? Eccentric and overbearing?”

Oddly enough, the brunette just shrugged, his eyes flashed in genuine amusement at the memory. “Don’t sweat it, I like your Aunt. She’s cool.”

“Really?” The ravenette replied, a bit taken aback.

Yunho nodded, a smile threatening to slip through his lips, “It was definitely the most entertaining dinner I’d ever been too. She keeps things lively.”

His response made Mingi’s chest feel a lot lighter, all of the anxiousness evaporating instantly. In fact, he was secretly thrilled at the idea of him and his Aunt getting along so well. He would never admit it out loud, though. So instead, he climbed into the luxurious, vintage Mustang and they made their way down the street to the cafe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always I hope you guys liked this chapter! If the note comes, ya know what to do ;). Until next time!


	8. drunken confessions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello again :D. welcome back to another chapter, and buckle up cuz this one is pretty long. I hope this chapter gives some more perspective on yunho, he even gets a little pov at the end ;). Enjoy!

The following week, Mingi sat in his music class with Wooyoung. The blonde came in seconds before class started, and received a warning glare from their music teacher before all but collapsed into his chair, panting heavily.

“Did you run here or something?” Mingi wondered, automatically passing him the lyrics to the song they were practicing.

“Something like that,” The blonde huffed, running his fingers through his hair before leaning back in his seat to take a deep breath, “Let’s just say Sannie kept me a bit uh, _ distracted _and I lost track of time.”

The ravenette crinkled his nose in mock disgust, “Ew, definitely didn’t need to know that.”

Wooyoung smirked, “Isn’t it the same thing you and Yunho do?”

Mingi felt the flush on his cheeks as he processed his question, and nearly dropped the stand for the papers. “I-_ No! _ You know we don’t-!”

“Really? Not even a fake kiss for show?”

“Not on the lips.” The ravenette mumbled.

“Wow, _ really _?” The blonde looked genuinely surprised, “That’s interesting.”

“It’s whatever,” Mingi replied, feeling abashed.

“. . .Do you want him to kiss you?”

The ravenette almost dropped the stand again, this time catching the attention of two girls sitting in front of them. He quickly muttered an apology, and they rolled their eyes before turning back around. He shot Wooyoung an annoyed look, which the other replied with a toothy grin.

“Well, I’ll let you internally debate that with your conscience later. Oh by the way, there’s gonna be a party on Friday at Yunho’s place. It starts around nine, bring however many people you want. Drinks and food will be provided!” Wooyoung said.

A party? Mingi was partly surprised it was going to be at Yunho’s place, he didn’t really seem like the partying type. But Mingi nodded, immediately going to the group chat between Seonghwa, Hongjoong, and Yeosang to let them know.

* * *

“I can’t believe we’re really going through with this.” Hongjoong sighed, from his place in one of the seats at the back of Seonghwa’s car. He had his arm propped up against the ledge under the window, and sat with his chin in the palm of his hand as he pouted. 

“You’re acting like we’re going to a funeral.” Seonghwa retorted.

The ginger spluttered, “You _know _what types of shady things go down at those parties! I’m the student council president, what would that make me look like if someone caught me there?”

“I really doubt anyone from the council will be there to rat you out.” Yeosang responded dryly before leaning over to pat his companion, “Relax Joong, this will be fun.”

The redhead just gave a defeated sigh, and turned to look back out the window.

Seonghwa turned into a neighborhood with the familiar high-rise, expensive buildings. He whistled lowly as they drove past one particularly luxurious looking house, “I still can’t believe Jeong Yunho is _ this _loaded.”

Mingi nodded in agreement, “The first time he brought me here I couldn’t believe he lived here. I thought we were just taking a really long path to his house.”

Seonghwa and Yeosang chuckled lightly at that. Hongjoong raised an eyebrow as he shot him a look, “You’ve been to his house before?”

“They _ are _dating, Joong.” Seonghwa commented. 

“Yeah, but…” The ginger trailed off for a moment, before his gaze morphed into a more inquisitive one, “What’s it like?”

The ravenette shrugged, “Big enough to fit my house in there, and that’s just the lobby. I was only there for a couple of minutes so I didn’t get to see much more than that.”

Hongjoong’s eyes widened in amazement and Seonghwa nodded, “As expected from a guy whose father is the CFO of the huge banking firm. But that’s not even the craziest part, ‘cuz guess who’s the CEO?”

Mingi was about to shoot the blonde a confused look, but noticed him nod towards the quiet brunette in the seat behind him. The ravenette’s eyes widened, “Wait, _ Yeosang? _”

Yeosang rolled his eyes, but a faint dust of pink-tinted his cheeks. He sat back in his seat, crossing his arms as he mumbled, “It’s not _ that _big of a deal.”

Hongjoong was the one to snort this time, “That’s got to be the biggest understatement of the century.”

“Wait, are you serious?” Mingi asked, taken aback.

“Their families have known each other since forever, they practically built the firm together.” Seonghwa answered, as they drove down the street, they noticed a number of cars beginning to line each side of the pavement. Well, all of them except for Yeosang, who stared down at his shoes.

Mingi’s eyes widened as he processed all of these new revelations. If this was all true, then it would definitely explain Yeosang and Yunho having some sort of pre-existing relationship with each other, and how Yeosang seemed to know so much about his personal life. They would’ve had to have known each other since childhood, if their families were so close. But, it still didn’t explain why Yunho felt like he couldn’t communicate his feelings to him properly. 

“Wait,” The ravenette turned to look at Yeosang, “Doesn’t that mean you live. . .?”

“Only a couple of blocks away,” Yeosang replied sheepishly, still looking at his shoes.

“Yeah, a couple of blocks away in a big ass mansion.” Seonghwa retorted. 

The brunette rolled his eyes with an indignant huff, while the two continued to tease him. Mingi remained silent, his mind running a mile a minute. He didn’t even realize the car had been turned off and they were all getting out until Hongjoong tapped on his shoulder, bringing him back to reality. The ravenette fumbled with his seatbelt a little, almost dropping his phone as he pulled it out of his pocket to text Yunho and let him know they were here. 

Hongjoong frowned a little, watching him with a worried expression, “Are you okay, Mingi? You look a little uneasy.”

It was such a stark contrast from the ginger’s earlier moody temperament that it almost made Mingi smile. Instead, he just nodded quickly, “Yeah, I’m fine. I was just thinking about something.”

The redhead didn’t look super convinced, but he didn’t argue further. They all walked up the long, round-a-bout driveway to get to the large house sitting at the top of it. They didn’t even have to knock at the grand double-doors, it was opened- not _wide _open- but enough that it indicated to anyone approaching they could just walk right in. The lights were dimmed, but Mingi could still make out that they were standing in the familiar spacious lobby.

The ravenette breathed out, still stunned even though he’s seen it before. It already looked incredible when it was just Yunho and him, but now that it was packed with a bunch of people, decorated with blinking lights and head-pounding music, it felt like Mingi stepped into a whole other world. 

“I can’t believe someone would throw a party here.” The ravenette muttered as they made their way through the crowded lobby.

Seonghwa simply shook his head, “This is your first rich people party, huh?”

Mingi nodded quickly.

“Well, you should know it only gets more obnoxious from here.” Hongjoong said with a glower, returning back to his original mood and crossing his arms against his chest.

As they moved throughout the house, and closer to the pulsing music, more people appeared carrying cups of alcohol and dancing everywhere. Mingi supposed it was a good thing the house was already so big and spacious, there was plenty of room for it. His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he pulled it out to read Yunho’s text message; 

** _Yunho:_ **

** _I’ll meet u in the kitchen _ **

_ Kitchen? _Bold of him to assume Mingi knew how to locate anything in this enormous maze of a house. Nonetheless, he gave a small resigned sigh and announced that he would go get drinks for everyone (Seongwha and Yeosang asked for liquor while Hongjoong simply frowned deeper). The ravenette weaved his way through the thick crowd of people, somehow ending up in the kitchen after five minutes of aimless wandering. At least all of the liquor was set up in lines on the counter, making his life a little bit easier. He was in the middle of pouring Seonghwa’s cup when a voice came up from behind him.

“Need any help with that?”

Mingi paused for a moment, recognizing the voice, and turned to see a familiar red cap stuffed with short dark locks, wide brown eyes and a small, soft smile behind him. Mingi’s eyes widened in excitement.

“Wooseok! I didn’t know you would be here.”

The brunette chuckled softly at his response, taking the bottle from Mingi’s struggling grip and easily pouring them both another cup, “I don’t usually get out a lot, but San kept telling me about it and hey,” He raised his cup as if he was making a toast, a small quirk to his lips, “I love a good party.”

Mingi did his best to clink cups, before sipping a little bit from his own, throat heating up from the alcohol. Involuntarily, he felt a series of coughs escape him, and he groaned. This happened every time he drank, _ without fail_. Wooseok seemed highly amused with this, seeing as the small quirk wouldn’t leave his lips. But after a couple of seconds went by, he relented and stepped forward, patting the ravenette on the back gently.

“Hey, you good?” He asked, showing genuine concern.

“Yeah, don’t worry..._ agh_, I’m good. It happens every time.” Mingi replied, his coughing fit finally starting to die down. He patted his chest a couple of times for extra measure. 

“Oh good, I don’t know what I would’ve done if you actually choked or something.”

“Probably laugh.” The ravenette replied dryly, which caused the taller teenager to shoot him an offended look. Mingi laughed at his reaction, and eventually, Wooseok’s expression melted back into one of amusement.

Wooseok leaned back against the kitchen counter, “So, did you come here with anyone?”

“Yeah, _ me.” _Someone answered before Mingi could even speak.

Both of them turned to see Yunho quickly approaching, and Mingi’s heart leapt before he could stop it. He kept his expression neutral, but it wouldn’t have mattered to Yunho anyway, seeing as he was too busy staring down Wooseok, _ again_. Yunho took one of the cups out of Mingi’s grasp, taking a casual sip for himself, before throwing an arm around Mingi’s shoulder like he always did. He subtly tugged the ravenette closer to his body until he was almost pressed against him, something that he _never _did. 

“Thanks for getting my drink, Song.” Yunho said, but his gaze was still focused on Wooseok, “Hoseok, wasn’t it?”

Mingi internally sighed, he _definitely _did that on purpose. He had no problem calling in Wooseok when he was complaining about how much Mingi hung around. 

The other ravenette just chuckled good-naturedly as he shook his head softly, “It’s _ Wooseok, _actually.”

“Right, sorry,” Yunho continued but they both knew he wasn’t. Mingi frowned at him, wondering why the brunette didn’t like Wooseok so much. It seemed whenever he was around, Yunho would be on edge, his demeanor cold and tense. “Enjoying the party?”

“So far,” Wooseok answered, pausing to glance around, “Good turnout. Do you always throw parties like this?”

“When I feel like it. Did _ you _come with anyone?”

The ravenette shook his head again, “Nah, I was just invited, so I decided to come.”

“By who?”

Mingi turned to shoot Yunho a look. He ignored it.

“San.”

“Ah,” Yunho nodded in understanding, before gesturing to a room adjacent to the kitchen, “Well, he’s over there by the couches. Shouldn’t miss him.”

This time, Wooseok looked slightly confused, “Huh?”

“San is the reason you came, right?” The brunette continued, challenge burning beneath his dark eyes as he looked at the other, “Or were you planning on spending the rest of the night glued to my _ boyfriend’s _side?”

“Yunho-!” Mingi was about to protest, but Wooseok cut him off with a dismissive laugh.

“That’s okay, I can read the room,” He turned to smile at the ravenette as he waved, “See you later, Mingi.” Then he smirked, “And go easy on the liquor.”

Mingi waved sheepishly back, feeling embarrassment heat up his face in memory of what happened five minutes ago. He wanted to apologize or say _something, _but words escaped him at the moment. Once Wooseok was finally out of sight was when Yunho turned his burning gaze to the ravenette. 

“_ ‘Go easy on the liquor’_? What does that even mean?” The taller brunette asked, looking more annoyed than confused.

Mingi broke away from the brunette’s embrace so he could look him in the eyes while he glared at him,“What the hell is wrong with you?”

Yunho looked away with a scowl, “Nothing.”

“That was not _nothing! _Don’t you remember our deal, Yunho? I said I don’t want you fighting anyone.”

“It wasn’t even a physical fight, and just because I don’t like him means I automatically want to punch him in the face.”

Mingi crossed his arms, “And why is it that you dislike him so much? You guys only met once and he’s barely spoken to you!”

Yunho scoffed, “C’mon Mingi, I’m not stupid. It’s _ obvious _he likes you.”

The ravenette was taken aback again, “What? N-No, he doesn’t. . .we’re just friends!”

Yunho laughed but there was no humor to it. He stepped closer to him, leaning down a little as he spoke, “You’re the only person who doesn’t see it. Every time I see him it’s always with you, he tries to be near you any chance he gets. Don’t sit here and act like you haven’t noticed.”

“I. . .” Mingi trailed off, lost for words once again as he stumbled over his feet. He severed eye contact with the taller, looking down at his drink instead. Truthfully, the thought had never even crossed his mind. But now that Yunho said it, it _did _make sense. He wasn’t necessarily against the idea of seeing Wooseok as more than a friend, but he wasn’t sure why the taller brunette seemed so upset about this revelation. 

As if he read his mind, Yunho spoke again, “We’re supposed to be dating, what would that make me look like if I just let guys try to flirt with you inside _ my _house?”

Mingi bit his lip at the thought, “What do you want me to do?” He asked quietly, changing the subject.

“Huh?”

The ravenette shot him an expectant look, “You know, whatever the next step is in your master plan to win Yeosang over.”

The taller brunette snorted, “Don’t worry about that. You already fulfilled the first part anyway, which was getting him to come here.”

“Doesn’t he come here enough with his family anyway?” Mingi mumbled lowly, looking down at his drink.

“What was that?”

“Nothing,” He said quickly, eyes snapping up to meet dark brown ones, “Well. . .if I’m not needed for anything, I guess I’ll go back to my friends. So if you’ll excuse me.” 

Yunho looked at a loss of words for a moment, seeming to notice how close he had gotten to the ravenette during their conversation; he was practically trapping him against the counter. Yunho backed up, giving Mingi enough space to walk away, but he didn’t, not just yet.

“What’s the second part?” The ravenette wondered curiously. 

Yunho’s eyes glistened with hidden amusement, “Don’t worry about that part, just leave that up to me.” 

Mingi did not share his amusement. In fact, it made him feel a bit uncomfortable, like someone was pouring ice into his veins, and Mingi turned around before the taller could catch the frown that threatened to break through his features. He walked away without another word, out of the kitchen, and back into the chaotic fray. 

“Done so soon?” The same voice called from behind him, and he turned around again to see Wooseok leaning against a couch, a couple feet away. He snorted lightly, “With the way your boyfriend snubbed me, I thought he had something important to tell you.”

Mingi felt himself shake his head in exasperation, “I’m sorry about him, he uh. . .isn’t that great with people he doesn’t know.” He wouldn’t say anything about what Yunho said, he needed some time to think about that. 

The brunette simply laughed, waving away Mingi’s guilt with a dismissive shrug, “Don’t worry about it. I figured he didn’t like me the first time we met.” A thoughtful expression crossed his face, “Although, it’s kinda weird how he refers to you by last name only. What’s up with that?”

The ravenette flushed, avoiding eye-contact as he tried to come up with an excuse. But what excuse could he make? _ Oh don’t worry, he does that because he doesn’t really like me. _It just sounded lame and pitiful to him. All Mingi could do was shrug silently, feeling that uncomfortable feeling from earlier churn in his chest.

Wooseok seemed to notice this, his expression morphing from curiosity to concern. “Is. . .everything okay?”

“There you are! Dude, what the hell? We’ve been waiting on you for like 15 minutes!” Seonghwa’s voice suddenly appeared from the fray of dancing people, and Mingi has never been so grateful to be interrupted out of a conversation. “Mingi, where were you? Did you see our texts? Joong got so nervous and paranoid he made us split up to go look for you.”

He turned to the blonde with an apologetic look, “I’m sorry. I got caught up-tell him I’m fine,” He then turned to Wooseok, “I’m sorry about how he acted earlier. I’ll see you at school?”

The taller looked like he wanted to protest, but settled for nodding with another soft smile. “I’ll see you there.”

Mingi smiled gratefully, waving again before following Seonghwa back through the crowd.

“What was that about?” The blonde muttered, before his eyes widened, “Mingi, didn’t you say you were going to get the drinks? What happened to them!”

* * *

Mingi was a little drunk. . .okay, more like _very tipsy _but he didn’t mean for it to happen. After the conversation with Yunho in the kitchen, he couldn’t stop thinking about how much it elated him that Yunho was protective over him, even if it was just for show. He also couldn’t stop thinking about how much it bothered him that it all was for _show, _ and despite how warm he’s been acting towards him his heart will always lie elsewhere. Just what was he thinking, signing himself up for inevitable heartbreak like this? Jongho and Wooyoung were right, he couldn’t keep acting like he cared about Yunho because he actually _did. _The bubble of denial and bliss he’d been living in was popped abruptly, and now Mingi had no choice but to deal with the truth. And that truth was;

He really,_ really _liked Yunho. 

Yes, he wasn’t supposed to. Yes, he broke his own promise he made to himself. The words the brunette said to him just a little over a month ago coming back to him. _ And can you guarantee, that you won’t catch feelings for me? As flattering as that is, that would be counter-productive. _God, even Yunho warned him! Why couldn’t he just think with his brain and not his heart? Mingi wondered if it would be too late to back out now, but deep down he knew he couldn’t do it. He cared about Yunho way too much to abandon him when he needed him the most, even if that meant he himself would get hurt in the process. He made a promise, and he would see it through. He just needed to hurry things along so that he could get himself out of this with at least some of his heart left whole. He needed to get them together, so he could forget about Yunho and start moving on. He had to-

“Hey Mingi,” A soft but familiar voice broke the ravenette’s musing. Mingi looked up from his spot on the couch to see Yeosang standing in front of him, a soft smile on his face but a bit of concern in his eyes, “Are you okay?”

“Yes,” The ravenette responded by nodding his head droopily, his words a little slurred. 

Yeosang laughed softly, sitting down next to him and gently taking the bottle out of Mingi’s hand. “I think that’s enough alcohol for you.”

The ravenette pouted, “I’m not drunk.”

“You’re not really sober either.”

Mingi grumbled to himself, leaning back on the couch and watching the party go on around them. Both of them sat in comfortable silence for a couple of minutes, Mingi going back to thinking about Yunho again.

“Does he live here by himself?” The question really came out before he could fully think it through. He knew he had his father, but he wasn’t around much and Yunho was very cryptic when it came to his mother. He wondered if Yunho had any siblings, or if he was there by himself all the time. The idea made his heart sink a little in his chest. 

Yeosang turned to him in surprise, before his expression fell a little grim, he looked down at the bottle he took from the ravenette,“Well, yeah. . . but they have a family caretaker who watches over him and runs the house while his father is gone. Plus, he has his friends.”

“Is that really enough though? It sounds really lonely,” The ravenette continued through a slurred voice, he threw his head back onto the couch, his arms falling beside him, “I’d feel lonely.”

The brunette looked ruminative, “You’re right, he probably does feel lonely sometimes. That’s what worries me.”

Mingi turned to look at him, “What does?”

Yeosang sighed softly, “His relationship with his father has never been very good, he was much closer to his mother. But when she passed away, he began to get closed off. He has a habit of bottling up his feelings so he doesn’t have to deal with them, but eventually, that bottle’s going to break, and I’m just worried about what the aftermath might be.” A thought seemed to cross the brunette’s mind, “But, he does seem to be less closed off now that he’s with you.”

Mingi’s eyes widened, _ “Me?” _He might’ve said that just a tad bit too loud, but all the brunette did was chuckle.

“Yeah,” Yeosang nodded, “He smiles and laughs much more often, I still think some of his deeper emotions are bottled up but. . .he’s coming back to being himself again, slowly but surely. I’m really glad you’re in his life, Mingi.”

Mingi didn’t know how to process that statement- or really, he didn’t _want _to process that statement. If he let himself believe that Yeosang’s words were true, it would just make it that much harder to let go of Yunho. So instead, he asked another question that had been simmering in the back of his mind since he started going to school here. 

“What happened last year to Yunho? Why did he get suspended?”

Yeosang’s expression fell grim again, “Oh, that was because of me.”

_ “What?” _He blurted out again.

The brunette looked uneasy, and after a couple of long moments he finally started speaking. “Last year, I was dating someone. Everything was going fine until I started noticing some negative behaviors he was showing. He was very controlling and possessive and well, let’s just say I ended things quickly after that. I wanted to move on, but he didn’t want to. He kept telling me it was the biggest mistake I ever made and I would regret it. He harassed me for months; constantly changing his number to call and text me, calling me names under all my posts on social media, following me around in school, he even followed me home once. It got so bad that I had a panic attack, and I didn’t want to go to school anymore. He threatened to assault me if he ever saw me there, and I was just so scared I stopped showing up. Yunho confronted me on this of course, and eventually, I gave in and told him the truth. Yunho turned and around left my house after I told him, he didn’t say another word. He was so furious, I was afraid that he might kill him. The next day I found out Yunho confronted him in the middle of class, and fought him until they were both bloody and bruised. He was going to get expelled, but I panicked and told the headmaster everything. I always felt guilty about that, there were already rumors about Yunho going around in school, and that incident definitely made it worse. I tried to ask him why he would do something like that knowing that he could get expelled, but all he did was tell me that if anyone ever bothered him again to let him know. That was it, can you believe that?” Yeosang looked at him again, there was something in his eyes that Mingi couldn’t explain. But they seemed to light up whenever he talked about Yunho.“But anyway,” The brunette continued, “After I healed from all of that, I realized that Yunho did all of that for me. It made me realize that a piece of the Yunho I remember from growing up was still there, under that facade he always wears. It relieved me, and I will always be grateful to him for what he did for me.”

Mingi didn’t know what to say. Even in his intoxicated state, he still managed to process everything that Yeosang said. It definitely put more things into perspective, especially with what Yeosang said next;

“So don’t worry about what other people are saying. We both know there’s a lot more to Yunho than what he wants people to think.” He gave Mingi one last soft smile, before pushing himself off of the couch and heading off into the crowd.

* * *

It was nearing 12 and the party was starting to die down a little bit, people were either stumbling out of the house and into his yard or they were passed out on the floor. When Yunho almost stepped on the seventh person he found passed out on the ground, he started to regret letting Wooyoung throw a party here. Said person was talking and giggling loudly into San’s ear even though they were right next to each other. And even though he kept wincing at Wooyoung practically screeching into his ear, he still laughed and looked at him as if he was the only person in the world.

Yunho walked away, not really feeling like being a third wheel to that. He surveyed the trash accumulating from the party all around his house, and cursed Wooyoung again. The only reason Yunho agreed to this in the first place was because his house was big enough to fit the people, and Wooyoung promised to clean up everything afterward. He better make good on that promise.

“Yunho,” Someone called out his name, and the brunette turned to see Yeosang approaching.

“Hey,” He said, meeting the other boy halfway, “What’s up?”

Yeosang smirked, his eyes full of amusement, “Just thought you should know you’re boyfriend passed out on the couch not too long ago.”

Boyfriend?. . ._ Oh. _“Where?”

“The one by the fireplace,” The shorter brunette gestured in that direction, before turning back to him with a small smile and a wave, “I’ll see you in school.”

The taller nodded, watching Yeosang turn around and disappear into the crowd again. Feelings that he didn’t want to think about swelled up inside his chest, but he distracted himself by turning in the direction of the fireplace to go find Mingi. It didn’t take him long to find him, and true to Yeosang’s word, Mingi was laying sideways on the couch, one arm falling off the couch to brush against the floor while the other one was on his chest. His dark hair was a little mussed, and his lips were slightly parted as he slept softly. In the chaos of the party raging around them, Mingi was soft and serene. Like an eye of a storm.

The brunette bent down to pick up the phone that was probably dropped when the ravenette went to sleep, and quickly typed in his password, going to his message app and texting his friends to let him know that he would stay here with him. Then he slipped his phone into his pocket, leaning over to look at the peacefully sleeping boy. He hadn’t forgotten about their conversation earlier in the kitchen, in fact, he couldn’t stop thinking about it. What was it that caused him to react that way? Why did the thought of another person liking Mingi bother him?

Yunho groaned, muttering quietly to himself, “What are you doing to me, Song?”

He grabbed the sleeping boy carefully, lifting him up and putting his arm around his neck for balance, and allowed him to lean on him. Mingi was warm, and a faint smell of lavender and alcohol. His eyes fluttered open when they started walking, and he let out a slow yawn.

_ “Yunho?” _ His voice was laced with sleep.

“I got you,” The brunette responded bemusedly.

“Oh, okay.” He slurred, before dropping his head again as he closed his eyes. Yunho laughed quietly at that; Mingi was a cute drunk.

They stumbled up the stairs, which Yunho made explicitly clear to Wooyoung that no one was allowed to be. He walked down the familiar hall, before stopping at the third door on the right. Yunho pushed open the door to his room with his foot, seeing as his arms were too busy trying to keep the swaying ravenette in place. He shut the door with his foot too, grunting with the extra effort as he reached over to hit the switch that activated the lights in his room, filling the dark silhouettes with bright, fluorescent beams. Mingi groaned at the stark contrast of brightness, covering his eyes with a long groan as the taller led them both further into his room. 

“It’s so_ bright_,” Mingi slurred, rubbing at his eyes tiredly as he opened them again, “Yunho, make it go away.”

“I’ll dim them once you take your sweatshirt off.” 

The ravenette blinked for a long moment, processing the brunette’s response before snorting out a loud laugh. “That sounds so naughty.”

Yunho snorted too, shooting him an incredulous look, “You’re seventeen years old and you still use the word ‘naughty’?”

Mingi frowned, stumbling a little in front of the bed. It was hard to stay balanced in one spot. “What else would I say?”

“Never mind that, just raise your arms.” Yunho muttered, stepping forward and gently grabbing the hem of Mingi’s stained sweatshirt. He must’ve spilled a drink on him at some point during the night, he probably didn’t even realize. 

Despite the ravenette’s prior protesting, he lifted his arms up without a word, letting out a giggle as Yunho pushed the article of clothing up his chest, claiming that it tickled him. When he finally managed to get the sweatshirt off, Mingi flopped backwards unto his bed without warning, still giggling to himself. He was also a very silly drunk.

“This is so nice and soft,” The ravenette murmured while grabbing one of his pillows to cuddle with, eyes closing again as he laid against the soft, soothing fabric. Without even consciously thinking about it, he breathed in the soft scent of the pillow; it smelled a lot like Yunho. Mingi let out a pleasant sigh, “Mmh, I could stay in your bed forever.”

Yunho snorted again, but this time there was a warmness to his cheeks he couldn't get rid of. “Who’s being the naughty one now?”

“Huh?” Mingi mumbled drowsily. He probably would’ve been as red as a tomato if he was sober enough to understand what the taller meant.

Yunho pulled out the dark duvet, tucking Mingi in so that he was comfortable. The ravenette turned to his right so that he was able to see him, eye-to-eye, as Yunho sat crouched at the edge of the bed. There was a long moment of silence, as he just watched him, trying to understand the thoughts spinning in his head. Yunho still wasn’t over what happened earlier, but the question had been churning in his mind ever since. Apart of him wanted to know, and another part of him really didn’t want to hear the answer. But the part that craved to satisfy his burning curiosity was stronger, and that was the reason he’d give for leaning in to run a hand down Mingi’s cheek. It was featherlight, almost as if he was a fragile piece of porcelain that the brunette didn’t want to break. Despite his light touch, the ravenette leaned into it all the same, his dark eyes fluttering open again as they enjoyed their small, confidential moment.

“Do you like him?” Yunho finally asked, his voice gentle in the serene atmosphere. His hand finally rested at Mingi’s nape, softly stroking his dark locks.

The ravenette gazed at him sleepily, “Who?”

Yunho bit his lip before sighing, “You _ know _who, Mingi.”

Mingi played with the silky duvet, looking contemplative, “Hmm, well he’s really nice to me. . .I like him. He’s fun to be around-”

The taller scoffed skeptically, “Fun to be around? When did you even start hanging out with him?”

“You didn’t let me finish,” The ravenette pouted, “You always do that; jump to conclusions.”

“What else am I supposed to think?” He retorted with a bit more bite than he anticipated, “He’s always around you. You showed up to my- your _boyfriend’s_\- party with him and you’d thought I’d be okay with that?”

“You’re not really my boyfriend.” Mingi mumbled, looking down at his hands.

Yunho flinched, his hand freezing in his hair, which caused the ravenette’s gaze to snap back up to him in surprise.

The brunette avoided making eye-contact, choosing to stare at the alarm clock on his nightstand as he gathered his thoughts. Mingi made a good point, but still. . .none of it sat well with him, and he couldn’t explain why.

“Yunho,” He looked back at the ravenette who was smiling with glazed eyes. He put a hand to his mouth and pretended to whisper, “I have a secret.”

Yunho raised an eyebrow incredulously.

“Come closer so I can tell you.”

“Go to sleep Mingi, you’re drunk.”

“No I’m not,” Mingi protested, but ended up fumbling his way closer to Yunho, leaning in so that he was right next to the taller brunette’s ear, “I really like you.”

Yunho froze at that, _ “What?” _

All Mingi did was smile again, before finally settling down on the bed, and closed his eyes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you as always for reading! If it shows up, kindly ignore!


	9. this was karma

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello hehe....i just wanted to say sorry for how long this chapter took to get here and also THANK YOU very much for all of the positive feedback last chapter!! That made me really happy, and also kinda sad because this chapter is a significant change in the plot...and maybe not in the best way. All I'll say is the 'Fluff and Angst' tag comes in heavy for this one.  
Still, I hope you guys enjoy!

When Mingi finally stirred awake, he felt the heavy pounding sensation of a headache coming on. He groaned softly, feeling his lanky arms reach above his head to stretch out his stiffened bones. _ Well, actually I don’t feel so stiff, _ the ravenette thought to himself, _ maybe I just got some really good sleep last night. _ Not thinking more of it, he continued to stretch, rolling his neck left and right and rotating his elbows until he finally let his eyes flutter open. The ravenette blinked the drowsiness out of his eyes, the heaviness in his head lifting a little as his vision cleared to a large room embellished in heavy navy blue tones and black. It took him a moment to realize this _wasn’t _his small, but comfortable bedroom in Aunt Mina’s house. He had never been in here before.

Also, he has no idea where the hell he is. 

Mingi’s eyes widened, and he jolted up immediately in the bed, feeling the sheets twist around his legs. With a startled yelp, he untangled his legs from the very nice, silky duvet and that’s when he realized the clothes he was wearing weren’t his either. Mingi’s eyes widened even more, his heart pounding a little harder in his chest as he began to panic. What did he do last night? How did he even end up here? All he remembered was drinking with his friends, the thing that happened with Yunho in the kitchen and well. . . coming to terms with feelings that already existed but he refused to acknowledge in the past. Oh, there was also the thing with Yeosang too. That was pretty _important; _he finally knew the mysterious reason as to why Yunho got suspended last year. All it did was make his heart flutter at the thought of Yunho protecting someone he cared about, even if that meant risking himself-

_ “No, _snap out of it,” Mingi said, physically shaking his head as if it could shake away the thoughts in his mind.

He needed to hurry up and get out of here. Maybe find some Aspirin for this killer headache while he was at it. 

What time was it? Either way, Aunt Mina was going to kill him when he got back. He glanced down at the clothes he was wearing, it was a red t-shirt that would be enormous on other people, but seemed to fit him just right. He was also wearing baggy, but comfortable sweatpants. At least whoever dressed him knew his size. He glanced around the room again, trying to locate his phone or any possession of his own. He was so engrossed in his task that the ravenette didn’t notice the door opening slowly, hesitantly at first, before opening all the way to have Yunho leaning against the threshold with an amused smirk on his face. 

“I see someone’s finally up,” The brunette remarked, nearly scaring the living daylights out of Mingi as he almost fell off the bed. 

Mingi’s head snapped up at the sound of the voice, his face slackening when he recognized who was standing there, “_Yunho?! _Where. . .how-”

Yunho sighed with a shake of his head, “You got so drunk you passed out on my couch last night. I told your friends you could stay with me,” There was a mischievous smile growing on his face as he added, “Then you got into my bed and told me you could stay there forever, and _ then _you leaned into me-”

“Stop!” The ravenette interrupted, his face already heavily flushed. His thoughts frantically raced around his mind. _ Oh my god, did I do something? How can I not remember all this? God, I’m never drinking again! _

The brunette just laughed, “Are you really getting flustered over that?”

“Shut up,” Mingi mumbled, more out of habit than actual spite as he finally pushed himself off the bed. He took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself for the worst when he said, “. . .did I um, _ do _anything?”

The brunette shot him a shit-eating grin, moving from the threshold of his room and taking slow, measured steps towards Mingi. “Do you really wanna know what you did last night?”

The tone of his voice made the ravenette even more sacred- he was already imagining the worst. _ Did I. . .could we have. . .? No! There’s no way. Yunho doesn’t like me like that, there’s no way he would agree to doing that. _The ravenette hadn’t even realized Yunho was standing right in front of him, until he reached out and gently placed a hand under his chin, tilting his head until they were staring at each other right in the eyes. There was a smirk on his face (that was nothing new) but his dark eyes were stormy, and Mingi hated the fact that he could never tell what the taller was thinking. He liked to think he was pretty good at reading people, yet he could never read Jeong Yunho. 

The brunette leaned in, diminishing the distance between them until they were only a breath apart from each other. The minty smell of his cologne gently wafted towards Mingi, and all he could do was try not to collapse on his shaky knees as the brunette’s scent flooded his nostrils and sped up his heart in his chest. 

“You gave me a really hard time,” The brunette mumbled lowly, “You’re so heavy when you’re drunk, plus you sleep like the dead.”  
The ravenette blinked. Those definitely _weren’t _the words he expected him to say. “What?” He blurted out dumbly. 

Yunho raised an eyebrow, “Seriously, how much do you weigh? I thought we were gonna die while I was coming up the stairs and you suddenly started flailing backwards.”

“And. . .what happened once we got upstairs?” Mingi asked carefully.

Yunho just rolled his eyes, “You passed out.”

Alleviation flooded his system as he pulled out of the brunette’s close embrace. Mingi let out a relief chuckle as he shook his head, as if he couldn’t believe he even entertained the thought. _ Of course, Yunho wouldn’t do anything. Nothing happened. _

“Wait,” Mingi’s gaze suddenly snapped back up to him as he remembered something, “Then _ why _am I wearing different clothes?”

The brunette just crossed his arms with nonchalance, “You spilled drinks on your other clothes, they’re in the dryer right now.” He said, gesturing to a vague direction in the hallway. 

More relief filled the ravenette as his racing thoughts finally calmed down enough for him to think rationally. All he could do was silently thank the divine powers above that he didn’t do anything incredibly embarrassing while he was drunk out of his mind. When he looked back up, he blinked in surprise when he saw the brunette’s hand stretched out in front of him, offering him two pills and a glass of water.

“Aspirins; for your hangover.” Yunho supplied, inching them closer until Mingi finally took them.

He scrunched his nose as he swallowed the pills, missing the way Yunho’s smile widened at his facial expression. Once he finished the water, he wiped his mouth and sat it down on the nightstand beside him, before finally remembering what he was originally searching for.

“Have you seen my phone?”

Yunho nodded, digging into his pocket and pulling out the familiar cellular device. 

Mingi thanked him before unlocking his phone and checking all of his missed calls and text, he was surprised to find that he didn’t have anything, except for one text from Aunt Mina;

** _Mina:_**

** _ Have a good time ;) _ **

Mingi blinked at the message, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. ‘Have a good time’? What did that even mean? He didn’t have time to ponder it, because Yunho interrupted his thoughts with a gentle hand on his shoulder. The ravenette looked up at him.

“I know you’re hungry, come on I made you breakfast.”

The ravenette blinked at him. _ He made breakfast for me? _

Yunho just shot him a look, “It’s pancakes. I know pancakes are your favorite, so don’t try to make excuses.” 

They _were _his favorite, but Mingi couldn't believe he remembered that. He randomly told him once, as they were walking into the cafe, that he was craving it. Yunho rolled his eyes and told him to go to an IHOP if he wanted some so badly. He never thought that the taller would ever take that into consideration. It surprised him in the best way possible, only adding more incentive to the longing burning in the ravenette’s heart. All he could do was nod meekly, too distracted by his own thoughts to notice the concerned expression that crossed Yunho’s face. Mingi silently followed the brunette out of the room and down the long, elaborate hallway until they came to the stairs that overlooked the foyer and walked down them. The ravenette glanced at the wide rooms in the halls, surprised to find everything relatively clean despite a chaotic party taking place yesterday.

“I told Wooyoung he could throw it here if he cleaned up everything.” Yunho explained, as if he could read the other’s thoughts.

Mingi just nodded as they finally made their way to the large kitchen, the sound of pancakes frying in the pan made him smile subconsciously. There was a short woman Mingi had never seen before in the kitchen, humming quietly to herself as she flipped a pancake in the pan.

Mingi frowned, “I thought you said _ you _made breakfast.”

Yunho scratched the back of his head, “Well, I was going to until I realized I was terrible and flipping pancakes. So I let Hani step in.”

"Sure." Was the ravenette's reply, eyeing him skeptically.

The woman turned at the sound of their voices, smiling brightly as she bowed to them, “Hello again, Master Jeong. Good morning Master Jeong’s friend.”

Mingi balked, _ “Master Jeong?” _

The brunette just sighed, “Hani, stop making me look bad.”

There was a mischievous glint in the older woman’s eyes, “I couldn’t pass up an opportunity. You can both come sit, breakfast is almost ready.”

The two teenagers sat at the stools that faced a smooth expanse of a white marble countertop. Yunho turned to him, “Hani is our housekeeper. I’ve known her since I was nine.”

Mingi nodded in understanding, he remembered Yeosang mentioning that yesterday. He frowned again, his stomach starting to grumble at the delicious smells wafting around the kitchen. Yunho noticed, and his lips curled into a smirk of satisfaction. Mingi rolled his eyes, nudging him softly.

“Hey,” He said, his voice significantly lowered, “Did you tell my aunt I was going to be staying here?”

Yunho nodded, a thoughtful expression coming to his face, “Yeah, she was surprisingly cool with it.”

Which means he will be bombarded with a million questions when he gets home. Mingi sighed dejectedly at the thought. He was definitely never drinking again. “Thanks,” He eventually said, “For you know, taking care of me.”

The brunette smirked at him again, “What kind of boyfriend would I be if I left you passed out on a random couch in the middle of a party?”

Mingi crossed his arms, feeling indignant, “You could’ve told one of my friends.”

“You mean the friends that were equally as drunk?”

“Hongjoong was our designated driver.” He pointed out.

Yunho snorted, “Yeah right, I’d rather have you here.”

“So you can tease me about it?”

“Well, that’s one of the perks. Is it so hard for you to believe I care about you?”

Mingi turned to look at him, eyes wide and speechless. Yunho was staring right back at him, seemingly unaffected by the words he just said. But before Mingi could process what he said, two big plates of steaming pancakes were placed gingerly in between them. He broke eye-contact with the taller to look at Hani, a secret smile on her lips.

“Don’t even start, Hani.” Yunho said, sounding exasperated.

Hani’s amusement never faded, “I wasn’t going to start anything, I’m just giving you your pancakes. Enjoy.” She said, directing a bright smile to Mingi, which he smiled back at as he nodded sheepishly.

It wasn’t until she backed away from the two and moved over to the sink to begin washing dishes did she speak again, “You two are very cute together, Master Jeong.”

Mingi choked around a mouthful of fluffy pancakes.

Yunho groaned, “I knew you were going to say something.”

* * *

After Hani finished cleaning up the kitchen, she excused herself to a long hallway in the opposite direction, leaving the two teenagers alone in the kitchen. Despite Mingi’s embarrassing reaction to Hani’s statement earlier, they sat in comfortable silence while they ate their breakfast. And in the comfortable silence, Mingi’s mind began to wander again. He thought back to when he woke up in Yunho’s room, silently freaking out over the fact that it was the _first_ time he’s ever been in a boyfriend’s room- fake or not. And the fact that it was Jeong Yunho’s room of all people. It seemed like such an intricate and intimate place, he was surprised he didn’t just toss him into a random guest room. He wondered how many people had been in the brunette’s room, and then he began to wonder how many times Yeosang had been to his room.

_ Okay, maybe I don’t want to know the answer to that. _The ravenette diligently switched thoughts, focusing on the dark brown guitar he remembered hanging above his desk. He wouldn’t have ever considered Yunho to be into music if it wasn’t for him peeking at the brunette playing the piano in the music room. He remembered how peaceful and natural he looked that day, that strangely familiar melody floating in the air like a warm summer breeze. 

“What are you thinking about, Song?”

Mingi was caught by surprise as his eyes moved to him, “Huh?”

Yunho leaned in, which made the ravenette instinctively lean away, but he couldn’t get far on his stool. The brunette cocked an eyebrow before letting out an amused chuckle, “You always make it so obvious when you’re thinking about me.”

“I’m _ not _thinking about you!”

“And the sky isn’t blue.”

“I was thinking about the guitar,” The ravenette quickly said. When Yunho just stared at him blankly, he elaborated, “You know, the one that’s hanging above your desk? The really dark brown one.”

The brunette’s eyes brightened in realization. He just simply nodded, “Yeah, I know. Why?”

Mingi shrugged, “I didn’t know you played the guitar too.”

_ “Too?” _

Mingi had an amused smile of his own, “Don’t bother denying it, I already know you’re a secret musician. I saw you play the piano once.”

“When?” Yunho asked.

The ravenette’s smile widened, “Why would I tell you that? It takes the fun out of knowing something you don’t.”

The taller rolled his eyes, before a hand shot out from behind Mingi, wrapping around his shoulder and bringing him flush up against the brunette. The ravenette let out a startled yelp as he was suddenly inches away from him again. Yunho’s dark stare bore into him, and his smirk was devilish, “Don’t try to get brave with me Song, I still know to make you blush in five seconds.”

Mingi pointedly ignored the blush rising to his face, wriggling out of his close embrace. When he was at a distance he felt he could finally _breathe _again, he shot the brunette one of his dirtiest looks. 

Yunho just laughed at him. 

He leaned back with his arms crossed, looking relaxed and comfortable in a stool in a way that Mingi would never understand. He gazed at Mingi with subtle curiosity, “Why do you want to know about the guitar?”

The ravenette just shrugged, casting his eyes down at the counter. “I don’t know, it’s like another puzzle piece for me. Every time I find out something new and unexpected from you, I get another piece to the puzzle. It gets me a step closer to figuring out who you really are.” He really didn’t know why he was telling him this to his face, the words just came out before he could really think them through. Maybe he was still hungover from yesterday.

“You really wanna know about me that badly?” There was no hint of sarcasm or arrogance in his tone, Yunho seemed genuinely surprised by this revelation.

“W-Well, it’s only fair isn’t it?” Mingi rambled on nervously, “It feels like you know a lot more about me than I know about you. I mean you’ve met my family, my friends, and you know about my embarrassing past relationship. I feel like I barely know anything about you- other than your history with Yeosang. Everything that I’ve learned about you, I’ve learned from other people.” 

Yunho was quiet for a long moment, and the ravenette began to worry he offended him. He was about to ramble out an apology, when Yunho suddenly spoke again;

“I was never very close with my father. He’s a cold and distant workaholic, hence why he’s almost never home. He was always too obsessed with working, my mom never liked that about him. But he never listened to her when she tried to tell him,” The brunette shifted a little uncomfortably in his seat, “So it’s no surprise I was a lot closer to my mother. She was gentle and kind, always patient with me, and never put any pressure on me as to what my future should be. On my eleventh birthday, she bought me a guitar, and taught me how to play it. That’s when I realized how much I really liked music, especially creating my own. From there I learned how to play the piano, the drums, the saxophone, the french horn. . .basically any instrument I could get my hands on. I had a talent for it, my mother knew and she encouraged me to pursue music as a serious thing, but we both knew my father would never allow it. He already had his own plans for my future set up."

Yunho’s eyes hardened, “When I was sixteen, my mother died. She was sick for a while, but didn’t tell me about it because she didn’t want me to worry. I only found out about it a couple of months before she passed because she was hospitalized. I remember being so angry when I found out; I didn’t talk to her for two weeks. How could she keep something like that for me?” It was a rhetorical question, but Mingi could tell the brunette was still wondering. He could feel his chest tightening in sadness at the thought. “But I couldn’t stay mad at her for long though, no matter how hurt I was about her keeping it a secret from me, I knew she was only doing it because she thought that’s what was best. Plus, I knew I couldn’t make this about myself. She’s the one who needed the most comfort, she’s the one who needed to be taken care of. I never left her side after that, I stayed with her till the very end.”

The ravenette noticed his hands beginning to tense around the fork he was holding, the skin around his knuckles whitening with the pressure. Without a second thought, he reached over and grabbed his hand, gently placing his own large palm on top of his. The brunette was startled by the sudden contact, his dark eyes darting to him. 

“I’m sorry you lost your mom,” Mingi started off, swallowing the heavy feeling in his throat and going for a small smile, “But. . .I really appreciate you telling me this. You definitely didn’t have to, I-I was just saying all that stuff about you never telling me anything earlier because I was embarrassed.”

Yunho chuckled softly, genuine amusement on his face as he leaned in closer to him, “So how does it feel, knowing the biggest vulnerability of the great Jeong Yunho?”

The ravenette shot him a flat look, rolling his eyes as he nudged him with his other hand. “This is supposed to be _ serious.” _He chided him, before adding hesitantly, “Are you. . .okay Yunho?”

The brunette sighed, “You know, for a long time I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be completely okay,” Suddenly, Mingi was aware of his hand still over his, because Yunho flipped his hand over with a smoothness he will never be able to comprehend, easily intertwining their fingers together. Mingi felt his heart jumpstart in his chest as the brunette smiled at him, his dark eyes clear with sincerity, “But I think I’ll be okay now.”

The oxygen felt like it was being sucked out of the room, he could feel the familiar heat rise in his face and could only pray that his hands wouldn’t get clammy- especially the one that Yunho was holding. He wanted to laugh off the taller’s behavior and claim that he was just teasing him again, but he couldn’t bring himself to let go of his hand. Mingi bit his lip.

_God I’ve got it bad for him. _

* * *

There was an anxiousness that sat in his chest like a heavy rock, and Mingi couldn’t understand why it was there. But he could feel it; building up subtly since he left Yunho’s house, and learned what he did, and when he learned about his mother. The ravenette sat on top of the familiar medical bed, swinging his legs back and forth, bemusedly listening to Aunt Mina gossip about a co-worker from her job. Jongho was slumped in the seat next to her, staring down at his phone, but nodding whenever it seemed appropriate. Mina went on, oblivious to the two teenager’s disinterest, but none of them minded. Deep down, they all knew that they’d prefer Mina’s animated gossip to the alternative, which was stiffening silence. Mingi never really liked waiting, the anticipation always made him apprehensive, and even though he’s had ten years of waiting experience being in the hospital, this time felt strangely different. 

Mingi’s phone buzzed in his hand, and he looked up at the top to check his notifications; Hongjoong texted the group chat, asking if everyone was free to go to a soft-serve ice cream shop later on. The ravenette was about to answer his message, when the door to the room opened, effectively silencing Mina’s dialogue and Dr. Jung cautiously stepped in. He greeted them with his signature handsome grin, but Mingi immediately knew something was amiss when the grin didn’t reach his eyes. His expression was carefully maintained, _too _carefully, and the ball of anxiety in the ravenette’s chest sharpened.

“What is it?” Mingi asked quietly, not wanting him to beat around the bush. 

Dr. Jung’s smile fell slightly. It was silent for another moment, before he let out a soft sigh as he sat down at the computer, looking up at the ravenette with a more somber expression. “I’m not really sure what happened, your previous scans showed that the inflammation was going down, but-” He seemed to cut himself off, sensing how quiet the atmosphere was.

Mingi felt his heart sink into his chest. He _knew _it, he knew there was a reason he was feeling anxious. 

“What can we do about it, Dr. Jung?” Mina asked, her voice felt like an empty shell of what it usually was. The handsome brunette sighed again, his expression sad, but at least he didn’t pity him. 

Mingi hated pity. 

“The inflammation has risen again, it’s not fatal but still concerning. I’d suggest an LVRS surgery to remove the diseased lung tissue, but of course there are the risks that need to be taken into account. Overall, the surgery has proven to be very helpful in reducing the swelling and decreasing the risk of it turning into Emphysema.” Dr. Jung stood up from his desk, pulling out a pamphlet from his white coat and handing it to Mingi, “I’ll let you guys have some time to think it over. I also suggest consulting his parents before the final decision, you have plenty of time to decide. We can discuss it further on your next visit.”

Mingi nodded solemnly, slowly sliding down from the medical bed. “Thanks Dr. Jung.” He managed to mumble out, and the handsome doctor nodded silently in acknowledgment.

* * *

Mingi stared up at the familiar ceiling of his bedroom as he laid sprawled out on his bed, just thinking. He’s been doing a lot of that lately, thinking about his past, his new life here, and his uncertain future. There was another sharp, heavy feeling in his chest, and the ravenette made an uncomfortable grunting noise as he rubbed his chest. He took his gaze off the ceiling to glance around his room for his bronchodilator, and felt a surge of sadness run through him when he realized this was the first time he’s needed to look for it in almost a month. It was a nice, short, peaceful month. 

Mingi sighed, turning away to look at his phone, which sat silently on his nightstand. He already let his friends know he wasn’t going to be able to make it for ice cream, but that wasn’t the real reason he kept staring at it; he knew there was another phone call he needed to make. He honestly really didn’t want to tell his parents, he knew they would be devastated to hear his condition had taken a turn for the worst after they sent him to Korea specifically to recover. He remembered the terrified looks on their faces when he was rushed to the hospital eleven months ago, he remembered the way his mother broke down when she feared the worst. He didn’t want to put them through that kind of pain again. 

He also thought about Yunho a lot. He was already anxious about their inevitable break up, but now that he knew about his mother, all he could feel was _guilt. _ Yunho was hurt by his mother keeping her sickness from him, and he was doing the same thing. _ Pretty hypocritical of me, _ the ravenette thought cynically, _ to complain about him not telling me anything about himself when I’m keeping the biggest secret about myself from him. _

Mingi sighed again.

He knew what he was going to have to do, no matter how much his heart burned in his chest at the thought. It was going to happen eventually, right? Yunho was going to leave him for Yeosang anyway. He was hoping he could speed up the process before it happened but unfortunately time wasn’t on his side. Maybe it was a good thing Yunho liked Yeosang, someone who was kind, thoughtful, pretty, smart, and most importantly didn’t have crappy lungs. Mingi already had enough people feeling devastated over him, he couldn’t add Yunho to the list. The brunette had already suffered enough loss. Mingi shifted in his bed again, blowing the hair out of his face in frustration. 

God, this really _sucked. _ It sucks so _bad. _

But he knew what he had to do.

“Tomorrow at school,” The ravenette muttered quietly, “As soon as I see him, I have to tell him.”

He grabbed his phone off the nightstand.

* * *

Yunho stared at his phone, thumb hovering over Mingi’s contact picture. It was him smiling so wide that his eyes turned into crescents, holding a drink from the cafe in his hand. Wooyoung said something funny to him that day, it made Mingi laugh and smile so hard that he couldn’t help but smile with him. He snapped the photo quickly, while everyone was distracted by his obnoxiously loud laugh. 

_ ‘I have a secret,’ _ He remembered his contagious giggles as he leaned into him, _ ‘I really like you.’ _

A strange, warm sensation grew in his chest when he heard those words, his heart pounding a little harder than before. His first reaction to that drunken confession wasn’t cockiness because he saw it coming, or annoyance. His first reaction was _relief, _which puzzled him more than the ravenette’s sudden confession. Why did he feel relieved to hear that Mingi liked him? Why did he feel annoyed when Wooseok was around, and why did he feel the need to tell him what happened to his mother and his secret longing for music. He hadn’t even told Wooyoung and San about the music thing, the only other person who knew was Yeosang, but that was because he trusted him. 

. . .Is it because he _trusted _Mingi as well? Trusted him to not exploit his deepest vulnerabilities? He didn’t know why he was nervous about how Mingi would react to the news, he didn’t know when Mingi’s opinion of him even mattered so much. He didn’t know when any of these new feelings started to develop, or when he stopped seeing the shorter ravenette as a means to an end. 

It just _happened. _

And now he was here, sitting in his living room, staring at his phone and debating to contact the person who’s been occupying more space in his thoughts than anyone else. His heart was beating faster, he was anxious and he couldn’t explain why, but he really _ really _wanted to hear Mingi’s voice and-

“Well shit.” The brunette mumbled, sighing in defeat as he slumped against his sofa. For all of his great foresight and observational skills, he sure as hell didn’t see _this _one coming. 

Serves him right, he supposed, for all of the flirting and teasing torment he put the ravenette through. For using his attraction to him for his own personal gains. This was just his karma catching up to him, wasn’t it? He couldn’t help but shake his head at the irony from his words that felt like a lifetime ago; _ and can you guarantee, that you won’t catch feelings for me? _

Yeah, this was karma alright.

The brunette ran his fingers through his hair, wondering what he should do next. There was no use denying his feelings for Mingi now. They were there, and knowing that Mingi felt something too made the warm sensation in his chest burst. Of course, Yunho had to confirm this from him. He said it while he was drunk, but he knew drunk words weren’t that far off from sober thoughts. He wanted to bring it up the following morning when Mingi woke up, but from the looks of it the ravenette had no idea what he said to him, he was probably drunk out of his mind. Plus, he wanted to have some time to himself to come to terms with his own thoughts.

He looked down at his contact photo again, his thumb dangerously close to the call button. Before he could do anything else, his screen suddenly changed with Wooyoung’s grinning face as his contact photo was displayed, asking to Facetime.

The brunette sighed again, “I’ll tell him tomorrow at school.”

With that, he accepted the call.

* * *

Mingi had never felt this nervous before, not even on the first day of school, not even when he was sitting in the waiting room at the hospital. Maybe this anxiousness was different because unlike all those other times, there was no fear of the unknown, he _ knew _what the outcome would be. Something in his chest twisted with agony, and the ravenette felt his breath cut short for a moment, stopping in the middle of the hallway. Jongho, who had been casually walking beside him, also stopped, eyes growing wide with worry.

“Mingi, are you okay?” The shorter brunette asked quickly.

Mingi nodded after a moment, “I’m okay.”

Jongho scoffed, “Yeah right, you’re a terrible liar. Are your lungs acting up again? Where’s your bronchodilator? You’re supposed to have it with you at all times just incase-”

“Yeah, yeah don't worry. It’s in my backpack.” The ravenette replied dully.

The shorter frowned at him, “Well, if it’s not your lungs that’s got you in a bad mood, what is it?”

Mingi avoided eye-contact, “I’m just. . .tired. I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night.”

Jongho looked like he wanted to protest more, but he was cut off by an arm wrapping around his neck in a playful manner. It was one of his friends, and Mingi gladly took this moment of distraction to slip away from his cousin’s scrutinizing gaze. He let out a sigh of relief when he was halfway down the hall, but all the relief from escaping his cousin immediately drained out of his body when he realized that Yunho was waiting for him at his locker. His stance looked cool and aloof from the average person, but the ravenette knew from the way he constantly tapped his foot and how his eyes kept darting around the hall that Yunho was nervous.

_ Nervous? But why? _

A part of him wanted to turn around and run away before he spotted him, but the other part of him thought it was best to get it over with now. If he didn’t do it now, he would probably never work up the courage to do it again. So even though his legs felt like lead, and his chest felt like someone was punching him in it, he managed to walk over towards him. Yunho’s gaze brightened at the sight of Mingi, he straightened up off of his locker.

“Song,” The brunette said quickly, “I have to tell you something.”

Mingi was slightly surprised, but he pushed it away. He couldn’t lose focus, “I have to tell you something too.”

“Really?” Yunho looked between nervous and excited, “Okay, you can go first.”

“Not here though.” The ravenette muttered, glancing around for an empty classroom. 

The brunette nodded in understanding, gently grabbing the shorter male’s arm as he led them far away from prying eyes and secret whispers. Yes, almost two months later and people still gossip about Yunho and Mingi. He didn’t know why his dating life was such an exciting topic in this school, but right now he didn’t care. He led the ravenette to the first empty classroom he saw- coincidently, it was the same classroom he led him into when he first brought up the proposition of dating him. _ How interesting, _ Yunho thinks, _ how fate works. _

Once they were inside and the brunette had shut the door carefully, he turned around to face the other, anxious yet excited energy buzzing in his chest. He couldn’t wait to see the look on Mingi’s face when he confessed to him, he would probably be so shocked that-

“Yunho,” Mingi started carefully, looking him directly in the eye.

Yunho smiled at the sound of his name from Mingi. For some reason, it sounded different than all the other times he called him by his name. Maybe if he wasn’t so caught up in his own excitement about confessing, he would’ve noticed sooner.

The ravenette took a step closer to him, he was silent for a long moment, looking like he was having an internal debate inside his head. 

“Spit it out Song.” The brunette encouraged, feeling more anxious the longer he had to wait. 

“I. . .” Mingi trailed off for another moment, before taking a deep breath, “I think we should stop this. I think we should break up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! (and dw there will be a happy ending). If that other note comes up plz ignore!  
*hides*


	10. keeping secrets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hellooo! I'm so sorry this chapter came out later than I expected, this monster chapter was a struggle to put together and I really don't know if I'm completely satisfied with it or not but I didn't want to leave y'all on a cliffhanger any longer!  
Warning: HEAVY angst especially towards the end 😭

Yunho blinked down at the ravenette slowly, his thoughts freezing as the words processed through his mind. Could he have heard it wrong? Maybe he imagined Mingi saying that in his haste to hurry up and get what he wanted out to the ravenette.

He _ definitely _heard it wrong, there was no logical reason for why Mingi would say that.

That’s why he ended up blurting out a _“What?” _With none of his usual smooth nonchalance of speaking and all of the bewilderment he was feeling at the moment. 

Mingi sighed again, his eyes glued to the floor. “We should break up.” His voice was so soft and fragile, he looked like he might break at the slightest provocation. 

Unfortunately Yunho didn’t notice this, he was too distracted by the ravenette’s last words, which rang loud in his ears and heavy in his chest. His heart felt like it was suddenly made of lead, dropping to the pit of his stomach to be burned in acid. He couldn’t believe the words that he’d just heard. How could Mingi say something like that? After all the time they’ve spent together? After telling him his ‘secret’ when he was drunk? After forcing Yunho to acknowledge his own feelings?

How could he suddenly change his mind like that?

“But, I-” The taller cut himself off for a moment, before shaking his head to clear his thoughts, “_Why?” _

Mingi looked taken aback by that, “W-What do you mean why?”

“Why do you suddenly want to end things? What’s the reason?”

The ravenette glanced down at the floor again, “I. . .I really wanted to help you see things through with Yeosang, but now I don’t think I’ll be able to. You guys look like you’re in a good place right now. Don’t you think you can take it from here by yourself?”

Yunho was completely caught off guard by the shorter’s confession. “You- you mean you want to break up with me because of Yeosang?”

Mingi looked at the taller as if the answer should’ve been obvious. “Yes?”

Yunho wanted to laugh at the absurdity, but caught himself before he did, only offering a short snort. _ Of course he would think that, _ the taller mused, _ he has no clue that my feelings changed. _Yunho took a step closer towards the ravenette, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder as he looked him in the eye, “Look Mingi, it’s not what you think anymore. I don’t lik-”

Mingi panicked at the feeling of the taller’s warm hand on his body, and quickly stepped out of the embrace. He clumsily shuffled back a couple steps until there was enough comfortable distance between them. His heart nearly torn in two at the hurt that etched itself into Yunho’s features at his rejection. As much as it hurt to watch, he knew that he couldn’t lose his resolve now. He had to keep reminding himself that this was for the best, he didn’t want to hurt Yunho the way that his mother’s death hurt him. He couldn’t cause him anymore pain, Yeosang’s words from the party echoed inside his head. "_He smiles and laughs much more often. . .he’s coming back to being himself again." _Mingi would never forgive himself if he was the reason that Yunho lost himself again. He could feel his chest tightening again, whether it was from his lungs or the agony he wasn’t sure. 

All he could do was blurt out, “I’m sorry, but I can’t do this anymore!”

Before Yunho could convince him to stay, he turned and ran out of the classroom.

* * *

“What are you guys bringing on the trip to Busan?” Hongjoong curiously asked the group of boys as they sat at the outside tables for lunch.

“A lot of snacks, most definitely.” Seonghwa replied as he picked at his rice, “I already know the food provided isn’t gonna cut it for me. That and some blankets too, it’s almost October.”

“You’d think they let us sleep outside?” Yeosang mused.

The blonde turned to him with an appalled expression, “Why would you want to sleep _ outside _?”

“To see the stars, duh,” The brunette replied with a playful roll of his eyes, “You can barely see anything in Seoul.”

Seonghwa shrugged, “Maybe I like my sky a little smoggy.”

“Anyways,” Hongjoong said with an exasperated sigh, turning to the ravenette, who had been staring down at his food the entire time, “What about you, Mingi?”

Mingi snapped up at the sound of his name, blinking up at the redhead. “Huh?”

“The trip,” The ginger repeated, “Aren’t you looking forward to it?”

“What. . .trip?” The ravenette asked slowly, still snapping himself out of his thoughts. He looked at the weird expressions on all three of their faces.

“Uh, the senior retreat trip at Samnak in Busan? You know, the one we’ve been talking about for almost a month straight.” Seonghwa said, raising an eyebrow in suspicion, “How could you forget? You’ve been gushing about how excited you’d be to get a break from school.”

Mingi blinked again, before the realization dawned in on him. He remembered hearing about it from their homeroom teacher, and how excited he was when he brought the permission slip home for Mina to sign. Has that much time passed already? It wasn’t that long ago his friends were excitedly making plans for what they were going to do at the ecological park. But with everything that’s been going on, it felt like those conversations were years ago.

All the ravenette could do was chuckle shortly as he nodded, “Oh yeah, I remember now. I haven’t even started packing, I’ll do it tonight.”

His laugh lacked the usual liveliness and joviality he usually had, and all three of them had noticed. They all exchanged looks with each other, unbeknownst to the ravenette because he had went back to staring down at his food, deep in thought. 

_"Is he okay?” _Seonghwa mouthed to Hongjoong.

Hongjoong shrugged as he shook his head, and they both turned to look at Yeosang, who looked just as clueless. Finally, after a lot of _ pointed _ looks, Hongjoong mustered up the courage to ask since he was (forcefully) nominated to be the speaker. 

“Hey Mingi,” The ginger asked gently, catching the taller’s attention again, “Is. . .everything okay?”

Mingi bit his lip, his fingers nervously twitching around his chopsticks. “Yeah, I’m okay. Why?” He mentally applauded himself for not stuttering.

“I don’t know, I was just checking in,” Hongjoong replied, the concern not leaving his wide brown eyes, “You just seemed a little off since this morning.”

Mingi could tell they weren’t buying it. Instead of trying to lie, he decided a half-truth would be better, “Sorry, I’ve been feeling a little sick since the weekend.”

“Oh, no need to apologize for that,” Yeosang added, his worry even more evident, “Are you okay? Do you need to go to the nurses’ office?”

Mingi gently refused, “It’s okay, I’ve been feeling a little better. I think it was just a small cold.” 

The three teenagers still looked unsure, but Mingi was grateful when they eventually moved on to another subject. After lunch was over, the ravenette waved goodbye to his friends and dumped his tray, before making his way back inside to his music class. He didn’t expect to see Yunho leaning against the lockers next to the classroom, it was even worse because Wooyoung was standing there next to him, engaged in a conversation until he noticed the brunette’s gaze was no longer on him but fixed on someone further away. Wooyoung turned to follow his gaze, his face brightening with a smile as he waved at the ravenette.

“Hey Mingi!”

Mingi froze, his heart felt like it was caught in his throat. He felt the familiar feeling of his legs turning into lead, and he felt like his feet were glued to linoleum of the hallway. He didn’t even realize he had been staring absent-mindedly until he felt someone run into his shoulder from behind, snapping him back into the present. The girl bowed profusely in apology, and Mingi dismissed her worries with a tight smile, before turning to flee into the music classroom. 

* * *

Mingi stood on the side of the pavement, a suitcase on his left and a pillow haphazardly wedged under his right arm as he stood in the early October air. It was 5:30 in the morning (_ way _ too early for him to be awake) but he didn’t have much of a choice, seeing as the seniors were going to be taking coach buses down to Busan for transportation. That was how he ended up standing here, half-awake, with a light windbreaker zipped up all the way to his chin to combat the buoyant early morning wind. Of course, his friends all stood next to him; Hongjoong was meticulously going through his duffle bag to make sure he brought everything, while Seonghwa and Yeosang were huddled up together under a blanket the blonde brought along. They were laughing at some funny video Yeosang was displaying on his phone. 

“Alright!” the ginger said excitedly, straightening from his kneeling stance as he re-positioned the duffle bag around his shoulder. The ravenette found it interesting how someone like Hongjoong could carry a duffle bag almost half his size so easily. “Looks like I got everything, thank god.”

“When is the bus coming?” Seonghwa complained, “We’ve been standing out here for like twenty minutes.”

The ginger checked his phone with a frown, “Should be here any second.”

Seonghwa groaned again, and Mingi felt a small smile stretch on to his lips in amusement. The past few days have been hard on him, but having his friends around did make it a little easier. Maybe. . . _ hopefully _, he could find a way to get through his self-inflicted heartbreak. 

There was the sound of low rumbling from multiple engines approaching, and all the students on the sidewalk cheered excitedly as the buses turned into the school’s parking lot. One of the teachers, Mr. Lee, ordered them to gather their things and start making their way to the curb, and the students followed suit. Mingi’s smile widened in genuine excitement, before it slipped off of his face completely when he recognized the brunette standing on the far side of the crowd, but easily discernible due to the fact that he towered over everybody else. 

_ Yunho. _

"Oh no,” He found himself mumbling to himself, before he turned to Yeosang, “I thought Yunho wasn’t coming. Didn’t he say he doesn’t like school trips?”

Yeosang just shrugged, “He usually doesn’t.”

So why was this any different? How can Mingi get over him when he’s going to be stuck with him for two whole days? The ravenette just let out a lamentable sigh, bordering the bus, completely aware of the intense set of dark eyes on him.

Mingi pushed his suitcase up on the rack above before gracelessly flopping down into the fuzzy-cushioned seat. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting out a pleasant sigh at how warm and comfortable it was to be inside the bus and not standing on his legs anymore. He absent-mindedly noted that the seat beside him groaned lowly, a sign that someone sat down in it. He just assumed it was Hongjoong or Yeosang (he hoped it was Hongjoong because he packed snacks and he was kinda hungry). So when he opened his eyes to ask for food, he received his second shock of the day, his heart jumping into his throat again as he realized it was Yunho sitting next to him.

Mingi looked around, bewildered, as he realized his friends were a couple seats away from him. He then looked back at the brunette, who was calmly putting his bag on the floor underneath them before sitting back on his seat.

“W-What are you doing?!” The ravenette whisper-yelled, flustered.

“Sitting.” The brunette retorted simply.

“Can you please sit somewhere else?”

Yunho glanced at him with a frown, but the familiar mischievousness in his eyes said otherwise, “But I already made myself comfortable.”

Mingi huffed, “Fine, I’ll go then.” 

He stood up to move, but realized Yunho’s bag and long legs were blocking his way. He cleared his throat, pointedly glaring at the brunette, who simply looked at his phone.

_ “Yunho,” _The ravenette complained woefully, frowning at the taller.

“Everyone take your seats!” One of the teachers at the front of the bus shouted, “We’re about to move!” Her gaze narrowed on Mingi specifically, and the ravenette felt his face flush with heat. With a defeated sigh, he plopped right back into his former seat, not missing the tiny snort of amusement that escaped Yunho. 

Mingi glared accusingly at him, “You did this on purpose.”

“That’s a cute pillow,” The brunette responded, his gaze still on his phone, but the grin on his face growing, “I think I remember that one from your bedroom.”

Furious blush spread across his face, warming him to the point that his windbreaker was starting to become uncomfortable, but he wouldn’t dare let it show. Mingi just turned towards the window, pouting at his reflection as he squeezed the pillow in his hands nervously. It just dawned in on him that he would have to sit next to Yunho for the next four and a half hours. The ravenette could only wonder what he did in his past life that was so bad to deserve this fate.

Only thirty minutes into the ride did Mingi fall asleep. It was amusing trying to watch him fight it off, his head lolling to the side with his eyes half-open, until he finally closed them and succumbed to sleep. Yunho had long since abandoned his phone, choosing instead to watch the ravenette from the corner of his eye instead. He laughed softly to himself when the ravenette began to snore softly, his head angled awkwardly in the space between the seats, his pillow loosely held in his hands. 

Silently, Yunho took the pillow out of his hands, placing it on his shoulder, before gently guiding the sleeping Mingi to the pillow. His body was warm and comfortable, his dark hair tickled Yunho’s chin, and the contact made a warm feeling melt inside his chest. Yunho wrapped an arm around the other affectionately, taking this opportunity to look at the other. One look at the peaceful expression on Mingi’s face ignited devotion inside him, and right then and there, he made a silent promise to himself. 

He wouldn’t leave Mingi, no matter how hard the other tried to push him away. He would find a way to express his true feelings to the ravenette.

* * *

When Mingi stirred awake, he found himself feeling oddly comfortable, considering the fact that he had to sleep up-right in a bus. Blearily, he blinked the lethargy out of his eyes, his vision clearing to focus on a gray hoodie-covered arm that was attached to a familiar face. Yunho hadn’t noticed him wake, he was calmly listening to music while scrolling through his phone. Mingi flushed at the realization that it was _ Yunho _ who he was leaning on, the pillow long forgotten in-between their laps. Immediately, the ravnette jolted upwards, nearly knocking his head into the taller’s arm which was casually hung around his shoulders. _ How did that even get there?_ Yunho easily slipped his arm away, allowing the ravenette to sit up properly and get his bearings before proceeding to glare at the taller. 

But as mad as Mingi wanted to be, all he could do was give a resigned sigh, “At least tell me I didn’t pass out on your shoulder.”

A small, amused smile came to the brunette’s lips as he shook his head, “No, but you were going to hurt your neck if you stayed between the seats like that.”

All Mingi could do was groan sheepishly, ignoring the pink tint to his cheeks. He really did not appreciate his ability to spontaneously fall asleep, especially at times like this. “How long was I out for?”

Yunho checked his phone, “Quite a lot. We’ll be at the campsite in like, ten minutes.”

“Is he finally up?” A way-too animated voice asked, and Wooyoung’s head popped up between the seats behind them. Mingi jolted in surprise while Yunho rolled his eyes in exasperation. 

Wooyoung laughed, “Dude, you basically slept through the whole ride! You missed all the fun road games we played! We tried to get Yunho to play truth or dare with us, but he refused to leave your side-”

“Shut up Woo.” Yunho grumbled, but there was a sheepishness to his voice that he couldn’t hide.

That was also evident in the way he pointedly avoids making eye-contact with Mingi when he looked at him. Wooyoung asks him if he wants snacks and the ravenette nods, suddenly feeling his stomach grumble. The blonde disappeared for a moment, ruffling for something in his bag before dropping chips into Mingi’s lap. 

“Enjoy your time.” He said with a wink, before sitting back in his seat properly.

Mingi pretended not to hear that.

True to Yunho’s word, the buses stopped at a campsite in Samnak. It was different from anything else Mingi has seen in Korea, but then again, he hasn’t been anywhere else but Seoul. He liked the fact that there were wide spaces of lush green fields, spruce trees decorated along the tents set up by campers, and embellished the river that ran through the ecological park. The buses pulled into a parking lot, all the students were rejuvenated with a new excitement at finally approaching the site of their field trip.

Mingi gathered his things, the buzzing excitement was spreading like a wildfire between the teenagers and it got to him too. Thankfully, Yunho let him pass without any trouble, and he met up with his friends outside. Once everyone was done unloading their things, they all trekked across the verdant field to where the other tents were set up. Everyone had to put up their own, it was big enough to fit at least five people inside. When they all finished setting the tents up they all gathered at a picnic table for lunch.

Mingi sat next to Hongjoong, eagerly diving into his bibim naengmyeon, after all he hadn’t eaten anything since five in the morning (and really, those chips Wooyoung gave him could only do so much). This time, he was aware of a presence seating itself next to him, and from the way their frame towered over his, Mingi sighed to himself as he prepared himself for yet another argument with Yunho when he turned towards them. His eyes widened when he realized it _ wasn’t _the familiar brunette sitting next to him.

_ “Wooseok?” _Mingi couldn’t quite keep the shock out of his voice.

The taller ravenette smiled warmly at him with a gentle wave, “Hey Mingi. Sorry, am I bothering you?”

“Oh, n-no it’s okay,” Mingi said with a shake of his head, his cheeks heating up slightly, “I was just surprised, that’s all.”

Wooseok nodded, “That’s a relief. I just wanted to hang out with you again, we haven’t really talked much since the party,” There was a tiny frown that pulled on his lips, “Was there. . . something I did or said to you that offended you? I kind of feel like you’re avoiding me.”

“What? Oh no, no! You didn’t do anything don’t worry,” Mingi said quickly with wide eyes.

“Was it because of Yunho then?”

Mingi opened his mouth to immediately refute, but stopped himself a moment later, Yunho’s words from the party coming back to him. "_Y__ou’re the only one who doesn’t see it. Every time I see him it’s always with you, he tries to be with you every chance he gets." _Even if it was said out of petty annoyance, the ravenette belatedly realized that Yunho made a good point. He had been contemplating the idea of being with Wooseok. It wouldn’t have been a bad option; Wooseok was funny, cute, and really nice to him, and the ravenette had no doubt that Wooseok would treat him well. But as tempting as that idea was, Mingi knew deep down that wasn’t what his heart wanted. No matter how hard he tried not to think about Yunho the past couple of days, he couldn’t help it, and every time he thought about him, his heart would warm with this indescribable feeling. 

It was safe to say Mingi still had a big fat crush on Yunho and it wasn’t going away anytime soon. _ Of course, because my stupid heart never listens to my brain. _That’s why he knew he couldn’t accept Wooseok’s feelings, or lead him on in any way. He cared a lot about him, and he knew first-hand what it felt like to long for someone who didn’t feel the same way. 

“Hey Wooseok,” The shorter ravenette started, nervously stirring his noodles with his chopsticks, “Can we talk later on tonight? I have to tell you something important.”

Wooseok looked mildly surprised, but nodded, “Of course. Where do you want to meet up?”

“During the bonfire. We can meet up here at the tables.”

Wooseok nodded again, something glistening in his eyes, “Okay.”

* * *

After lunch, the retreat activities began and the first one was a trek through the ecological park. Mingi wasn’t really that fond of walking around for long periods of time, especially in a place full of weird and pesky bugs. He almost forgot about his weird fear of large insects. He practically screamed at a volume that would’ve broken glass when Seonghwa played a prank on him and told him there was a spider on his shoulder. He liked taking pictures with his friends though, laughing with each other as they looked at various flora. Of course, Mingi wouldn’t be Mingi if he didn’t almost trip over something (a large root from some plant that emerged from the dirt). He could feel his foot twisting in an uncomfortable way, panic flaring inside of him as he realized his balance was off and he was going to have a very painful and embarrassing conversation with the ground. 

That was until he felt a pair of tan arms wrap around his middle, quickly pulling him back from falling to his doom and into the familiar broad chest. Mingi’s head snapped up to stare up at Yunho with bewilderment, his heart still racing from that jump scare. He could feel the taller’s breath against his ear softly, and it totally did not make his insides squirm (it definitely did).

“How many times am I gonna save you, Song?” Yunho mumbled teasingly.

Mingi was instantly reminded of the first time they met, when Yunho had stopped him from getting plowed by a truck. He grabbed him in a similar way he grabbed him now. Blushing wildly, the ravenette twisted in the taller’s grasp, forcing him to let go as he turned around to face him, taking a couple of precautionary steps back.

“Mingi are you okay?” Hongjoong asked, his voice full of concern.

It was then that it occurred to the ravenette that not only did he embarrass himself, his friends witnessed it too. He promptly wished he could disintegrate into dust like they did in the Avengers movie he saw.

After the trek, there were outside games going on like soccer, flag football, tug-o-war, and an arts and crafts corner set up by some of the girls. Mingi and his friends decide to do the tug-o-war and they walk over as the others are dividing themselves into two teams. Mingi, Yeosang, and Wooyoung were on one side while San, Seonghwa, and Hongjoong were on the other side. He was told to be at the end of the rope since he was so tall and to be used as a “secret weapon” as Wooyoung put it. Apparently, he was supposed to wait till the end to use his strength to pull it over their side. When the ravenette asked him why he had to wait till the end, the blonde turned to him with a devilish grin and told him it was "_to keep things interesting"_.

The match started and everyone started pulling, their classmates shouting and cheering each side along as the match started to gather more people’s attention. Their side was losing, but Wooyoung said he would look at them and give him the signal when it was time for Mingi to step in. Mingi adjusted his grip on the rope, preparing himself for the signal when he jumped at the pair of hands that wrapped themselves around the rope too, and he turned to see Yunho once again. 

“Yunho?! Wha- now is _ not _ the time!” 

“I need to talk to you about something, Song. It’s important.”

The ravenette sighed, “I told you, I can’t-”

“Mingi, go!” Wooyoung shouted, giving him the signal.

The ravenette jolted and then pulled the rope with as much strength as he could, that was until Yunho grabbed one of his hands. One could say it was because he was helping in pulling the rope, but Mingi knew better. Despite knowing better, the ravenette still reacted to his touch because his body always seems to have some involuntary reaction to Yunho. And for some reason, his brain told his hands to drop the rope. Not to even get out of Yunho’s grasp.

Just the rope.

The other team won, and Wooyoung shot him the dirtiest look he’s ever seen (it took Mingi a lot of pleading, snacks, and a promise to go shopping with him in order to get Wooyoung to forgive him). As the sky began to darken, they all gathered around for the bonfire, sitting down on blankets or chairs as one of the teachers began passing around sticks to roast sausages or marshmallows for smores. Even so late in the day, the students were all lively with amiable chatter, some of them were listening with rapt attention to the scary story Wooyoung was telling anyone who would listen.

After roasting a couple of s'mores, Mingi figured it was time to do what he needed to, and he looked over to make eye-contact with Wooseok. The taller immediately nodded in understanding, excusing himself from his group of friends as they both made their way up to the benches where they could speak privately and comfortably.

Wooseok leaned against the bench languidly, “What’s up?”

“Well,” The ravenette started off apprehensively, “It’s um, about that party from last week.”

“You don’t have to feel guilty because of what happened,” Wooseok said softly, “I get it, he can be a little jealous when it comes to you. Can’t really blame him anyway, I’d probably do the same thing if you were mine.”

_ If you were mine. _Mingi stiffened at those words, and he looked the taller in the eyes, “It’s not about Yunho actually. Listen Wooseok, I’m going to ask you something and you have to be completely honest with me.” The taller boy looked a little puzzled, but still nodded his head for him to continue. Mingi took a deep breath, steeling his nerves, “Do you like me, as in more than a friend?”

The taller ravenette’s eyes widened for a moment, before his face went carefully blank as he looked down at his hands. It was silent for a long moment, and Mingi wondered if he should say something else, but Wooseok finally looked back up at him;

“How long have you known?”

“From the party,” Mingi replied as he sat down on the bench next to him, “Funny enough Yunho was the one who told me.”

Wooseok shook his head with a sigh, “That’s. . .really embarrassing. No wonder why he always glares at me in the hallways.”

Mingi nodded moderately.

“Let me guess, you can’t accept my feelings, huh?”

The shorter ravenette sighed, a swarm of guilt rushing through his chest, “I’m really sorry Wooseok.”

Wooseok shook his head with a dismissive wave, turning towards Mingi with a small smile, “It’s okay, I knew I shouldn’t get my hopes up anyway. You really like Yunho don’t you?”

There was a small knot that was forming inside Mingi’s throat, all of a sudden he could feel all the repressed emotions rising to the surface. His eyes watered up, blurring his vision in the corners, and soon began to drip warm tears down his cheeks. 

“Mingi, are you okay?” Wooseok asked with growing concern.

Mingi shook his head, covering his face with his hands and bringing his knees up to his chest as he felt himself begin to cry. _ God _everything had been so stressful for him recently, and now that nervous tension was catching up to him. He cried for a couple of minutes, small whimpers escaping his trembling lips, and he could absently feel a warm hand wrap around his shoulders to comfort him. Once he could feel calming down, he slowly brought his hands down from his face. He sniffled a couple of times, wiping the wet streaks from his cheeks, ignoring the bitter salty taste on his lips. He took a couple of deep breaths, trying to soothe his heavy heart. Crying did make him feel a little better.

“Did something happen?” Wooseok asked quietly.

Mingi wasn’t sure what compelled him to, but he ended up telling Wooseok everything. He started from the beginning, explaining how he met Yunho and how they agreed to fake date each other for Yunho’s sake. He told him about the dates, how he started to fall for the brunette, and he told him about his guilt. He didn’t go into detail about what Yunho told him that day, but he expressed how guilty he felt because he didn’t want to hurt Yunho the same way someone else hurt him. Of course, in order to understand his guilt, Mingi had to fess up and admit to the fact that he had COPD, and he needed surgery. He also even told him the reason why he came to Korea in the first place; to recover from the attack on his lungs. 

Once he started spilling the truth, he couldn’t stop, and he trusted Wooseok enough. He told him more stuff than he’s told anyone else, and it felt alleviating to finally get all of his problems off his chest and share at least some of the burden with someone else. When Mingi looked up at him, he didn’t see the pity he expected. It was just sadness, a resigned sadness that swelled in Wooseok as he looked at him. It didn’t really bother him that much.

“Can you say something?” The ravenette asked with a humorless chuckle.

“I. . .don’t even know what to say.”

“Oh.” Mingi mumbled, feeling a little embarrassed.

“I can’t believe you’ve been dealing with all of this by yourself,” Wooseok continued, “I’m really glad you told me all of this, but I don’t think I’m the only one that should know this. Why haven’t you told him the truth?”

“Because I don’t want to hurt him,” Mingi said with a resigned sigh, “He’s already been betrayed once by someone else, I don’t want to do the same. Plus, Yeosang told me he was getting better. He was _ finally _starting to heal from his past, how could I hurt him like that again? I could never.”

“I don’t think you’ve realized this, but not telling him the truth and trying to avoid him only makes things worse.”

Mingi snapped his gaze up at the taller, “What?”

Wooseok sighed again, his hand around his shoulder squeezed softly, “Think about it. You know that he’s been hurt before because someone kept the truth from him. Isn’t that the same thing that you’re doing right now? Trying to hide the truth from him because you don’t want to hurt him?” Mingi looked away guiltily. “If I was him, I’d probably be even more hurt by the fact that you’re avoiding me than what you’re keeping. We’re in a relationship, we should be comfortable telling each other things.”

Mingi grimaced slightly, Wooseok _did_ make a good point.

“But we’re not actually dating.” The ravenette mumbled weakly.

The taller shot him a pointed look, “C’mon Mingi, you really like him.”

“Yeah, but _he_ likes Yeosang-”

“I think, if he really still liked Yeosang, he wouldn’t be trying to be with you all the time after you broke things off.” Wooseok pointed out. 

“But we’re just pretending to-”

“Mingi,” Wooseok interrupted more firmly, “It’s not impossible for his feelings to change. It’s clear to anyone that Yunho likes you too, he really cares about you.”

Mingi bit his lip, staring down into his lap for a long moment. “So. . .should I tell him the truth?"

“I think you should tell him, it’s better for both of you that way.” The taller said, gently rubbing his shoulder. 

The shorter ravenette weighed his words, he saw the logic in what Wooseok was saying, but the thought of telling Yunho everything made him anxious. But he couldn’t figure out _ why _ it made him so anxious. Maybe it wasn’t just hurting Yunho that he was afraid of, maybe the bigger, underlying reason is that he was afraid of what would happen once he told him. That blissful little bubble of happiness he had living here would be popped once everyone knew the truth. Maybe he was more afraid of Yunho looking at him differently if he told him, of _ all _his friends looking at him differently. Maybe he just wanted to pretend to be a normal teenager for as long as he could.

But Mingi’s life was never normal, and maybe it was time that he accepted that.

The ravenette let out another sigh, “Fine. I’ll tell him.”

Wooseok nodded, “When?”

“I don’t know, when do you think I should tell him?”

“Probably as soon as possible.” The taller said with a snort.

Mingi smiled a little, but his smile didn’t last as he saw that Yunho was approaching them, a dark look in his eyes. He quickly jumped up to his feet, “Yunho, I-”

“Is _ this _ the reason why you wanted to break up with me?” The brunette spat, his words frigid and cold as he made a hand gesture towards Wooseok, “ _ He’s _the reason why you refuse to talk to me?”

“Listen, he’s-” Wooseok tried to explain, but Yunho turned his burning glare to him.

“Shut the_ hell _ up.” He hissed, pushing the taller roughly so that he fell back against the bench. 

_ “Yunho-!” _

“No, I don’t want to hear it Mingi!” His eyes were flared wide, anger mixed with hurt in them, “You walked away from me without even giving me a chance to explain myself! Do you think that's fair? _ Huh? _”

The guilt rose again. “No.” Mingi answered meekly.

“I thought it was because you thought I still liked Yeosang. I could understand that, so I figured I should make my feelings clear to you. I was going to tell you that day you dumped me, you know, that I wanted to be with you officially. I’ve been trying to tell you ever since but you kept. . .you kept ignoring me. I couldn’t figure out why you would do that,” He glared between them, “But I guess I know why now.”

“No Yunho, it’s not like that!” Mingi pleaded, running up to the taller and grabbing his shoulders, “It’s just. . . I . . . I-”

“You _ what _?” 

Mingi felt like his voice couldn’t work. That ball that formed in his throat expanded to the point it felt like he couldn’t breathe properly. He felt the familiar burning sensation begin in his lungs.

Yunho snatched his hands away from him, and Mingi’s arms draped uselessly at his side. The fiery anger in his eyes had died down to a colder animosity. The look that he gave the ravenette made his heart sink to his stomach.

“I hope you’re happy with him,” Yunho sneered, “Because I don’t ever want to see you again.”

“Yunho!”

He turned away without another word, walking away and breaking Mingi’s heart further with each step. He could feel his vision blur with tears again, the burning sensation in his chest flooding him with pain. 

“I'll talk to him Mingi, don’t worry.” Wooseok said quickly, “I’ll make him understand.”

“I can’t breathe.” The ravenette’s voice was quiet but hoarse, a tear running down his cheek. 

“What?” The taller turned to look at him with a bewildered expression.

The pain was all becoming too much. He could feel his heart pounding in his ears, but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t cycle his next breath. Panic rose in him quickly, “I can’t _breathe_!” He wheezed, feeling himself drop to his knees as he held a hand to his chest. No matter how hard he tried he couldn’t do it. He felt like he was dying, slowly suffocating with the way the fire in his lungs burned, “W-Wooseok, I can’t- I can’t brea-”

“Mingi!”

Someone caught him from hitting his head, he was yelling something but Mingi couldn’t distinguish it. Everything started to move in slow motion, his vision and hearing began to get distorted. He kept clutching at his chest as he wheezed, trying his hardest to breathe. Another tear ran down his cheek as he looked at the blurry figure’s face. Their smell was familiar, and his vision cleared just enough to see the terrified expression on the handsome brunette’s face.

_ Yunho, _ he brain thought sluggishly, _ I’m sorry. _

With one last wheeze, he felt himself lose consciousness, and everything faded to darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uhh 😳 sjjskskdk thank you for reading as always! tell me what you guys think!  
*ignore that comment thingy if it comes up*

**Author's Note:**

> this is my first ateez fic, and i had this idea in mind for a little while now and decided to try it. I would really appreciate comments, should I continue?


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